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Above Ground Tank Containment Discharge And SPCC Plan Case Study

A large retail company received complaints from the city officials regarding the rainwater discharge from the diesel fuel tank containment area on site.

According to city officials, a petroleum odor had been observed inside the manhole adjacent to the containment area. Above ground storage tank (AST) containment areas usually discharge to storm sewer systems, however, this facility was designed to allow the containment area to discharge to the sanitary sewer system.

Sierra visited the site, met with the city managers and prepared an engineering study that evaluated several alternatives, which included leaving the discharge to the sanitary sewer, installing a new discharge to the storm sewer system, and installing a roof over the tanks to limit the rainwater accumulation. The city agreed that leaving the discharge to the sanitary sewer was acceptable as long as the city could control the discharge valve to ensure no fuel would be discharged to the sewer system and also for our client to provide payment for processing the rainwater (which otherwise entered the sewer unmetered).

Sierra also recognized that the facility needed a Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasures (SPCC) Plan to meet Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requirements for oil pollution prevention. Sierra prepared a SPCC plan to address the diesel fuel ASTs as well as the used oil and new oil ASTs at the truck maintenance garage. The warehouse also used an AST for used oil collection in their routine maintenance. The used oil collection Operation was also included in the plan. Sierra conducted a meeting to explain the requirements defined in the SPCC plan and to train the facility managers.

Sierra has completed numerous SPCC Plans and training for clients with facilities located across the United States. For more information about SPCC Plans, please contact Debbie Strawhand at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or 770-792-6200.