UST Operator Certification Procedures

• The Class A operator exam consists of approximately 65 questions and has a time limit of 2 hours.
• The Class B operator exam consists of approximately 50 questions and has a time limit of 2 hours.
• The Class A/B operator exam consists of approximately 80 questions and has a time limit of 2½ hours.

• Tank IQ, the NYDEC’s exam study guide;
• DER-40, the NYDEC’s operator training policy;
• New York’s PBS regulations (6 NYCRR 613); and
• New York’s CBS regulations (6 NYCRR 596-599).

Registration & Fees

• USTs with a capacity of 1,100 gallons or more must be registered with the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). Tanks storing used oil, regardless of size, must also be registered.
• Owners/operators must register these tanks with the DEC by submitting a completed Petroleum Bulk Storage Application form (form instructions can be found here).  New registrations must be accompanied by a copy of the property deed showing the owner’s name and the date the owner acquired the property. The owner/operator must also pay the appropriate fee as determined using the PBS Registration Fee Worksheet.  Once a tank has been registered, the DEC will issue a registration certificate, which must be prominently posted at the facility.  When ownership of a facility or any facility information changes, the new owner must register the tank(s) or submit an updated form within 30 days.
• UST registrations and registration certificates are valid for five years, at which time the owner/operator must submit a renewal Petroleum Bulk Storage Application.

• CBS USTs must be registered with the state regardless of size.
• Owners/operators must register these tanks with the DEC by submitting a completed Hazardous Bulk Storage Application form (form instructions can be found here).  Registration fees are based on the size of the tank, as indicated on the CBS Registration Fee Worksheet.
• CBS tank registrations must be renewed every two years.

Release Reporting

1. The spill is less than 5 gallons; and
2. The spill has been contained and controlled; and
3. The spill has not reached any waters of the state (including groundwater) or land; and
4. The spill is cleaned up within 2 hours of discovery.

Release Detection

• Automatic tank gauging (ATG)
• Secondary containment with interstitial monitoring
• Secondary barrier monitoring**
• Statistical Inventory Reconciliation (SIR)
• Manual tank gauging
• Vapor monitoring*
• Groundwater monitoring*
• Tank tightness testing

Release Prevention

• Any product remaining in a spill bucket for more than two hours is considered a reportable spill and must be reported to the DEC immediately.

• Owners/operators must:
  • Monitor all fuel deliveries from beginning to end;
  • Inspect your spill buckets for the presence of product or water as well as cracks, worn seals, etc.;
  • Respond to all overfill indications; and
  • Report and clean up all spills.

• A UST must not be equipped with both an automatic shut-off and a ball float valve.

• Both impressed current and galvanic (sacrificial anode) cathodic protection systems must be tested six months after installation and every year thereafter.

Financial Responsibility

• Liability insurance coverage from a qualified provider
• Financial test of self-insurance
• Guarantee*
• Surety bond*
• Letter of credit
• Trust fund

Inspection & Testing Requirements

• PBS inspection checklist
• PBS Inspection Handbook
• Summary of PBS Recordkeeping Requirements
• CBS inspection checklist

Delivery Prohibition/Non-Compliance Enforcement

• If a Tier 1 condition exists at a facility, the DEC inspector will affix a red tag to the fill pipe of the UST system.
• If the source of a petroleum release cannot be determined at the time, all tanks at the facility will be red-tagged.
• The DEC inspector will provide the owner, if present, with written delivery prohibition notification including a list of violations.
• The DEC will then send written notification to the facility via certified mail within five business days of red-tagging.

• When the DEC finds that a Tier 2 condition exists at a facility, the DEC will first send written notification to the owner/operator detailing the violations discovered at the facility, then affix a red tag to the fill pipe(s).

Temporary & Permanent Closure

• Tank systems that do not receive or dispense product for 30 days or more are considered out-of-service or temporarily closed.
• The owner/operator must notify the DEC at least 30 days before taking a UST out-of-service.
• The owner/operator will also need to submit an amended registration form to the DEC at least 30 days prior to temporarily closing the UST.

• USTs that have been out-of-service/temporarily closed for more than 12 months must be permanently closed.
• The owner/operator must notify the DEC at least 30 days before beginning permanent closure unless the permanent closure is a result of corrective action required by the DEC.
• The required site assessment of the excavation zone to measure for evidence of a release must be completed after notifying the DEC but before completion of the permanent closure.
• The site assessment report must be submitted to the DEC within 90 days of closure completion.
• The owner/operator must also submit an amended registration form to the DEC within 30 days of permanently closing the UST system.
• To permanently close a UST system, the owner/operator must:
  • Empty and clean the UST system to remove all liquids and accumulated sludge;
  • Ensure that all deliveries to the UST system are terminated;
  • Disconnect or remove all piping, vent lines, and ancillary equipment; and
  • Either remove the tank from the ground or fill it with an inert solid material (such as sand or concrete).
• Owners/operators must submit closure records to the DEC within 90 days following permanent closure.

• Prior to implementing a change in service, owners/operators must:
  • Empty and clean the tank by removing all liquid and accumulated sludge; and
  • Complete a site assessment of the excavation zone.
• If an owner/operator is switching a tank system to a different type of petroleum product, the owner/operator does not need to complete a site assessment, but must submit an updated registration form to the DEC within 30 days after the change in service.  The owner/operator must also ensure that your UST system is compatible with the new product stored and meets all standards and regulatory requirements.

Recordkeeping

• Proof of operator training;
• Closure records, including results of the site assessment (required to keep for 3 years, recommended to keep permanently);
• Ten-day inventory monitoring and reconciliation records;
• Weekly tank and piping monitoring records;
• Leak detection repair records (keep for 3 years after the repair);
• 60-day impressed current rectifier readings;
• Annual cathodic protection system test results; and
• Suspected leak reports.

• The current registration certificate (keep for 5 years); and
• Lining inspection records (keep for 5 years).

• Proof of financial responsibility;
• Tank and line tightness test results;
• Installation records; and
• General repair records.

• Annual line leak detector operability test records.