Oil refining company to correct its spill prevention plans, pay for CWA violations

Clean Water Act requirements state that certain facilities must prepare and maintain Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure plans to prevent spills and have Federal Response Plans to respond to spills if they do occur.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has signed an agreement with the Commonwealth Oil Refining Company (CORCO) regarding the company's defunct refinery in Penuelas, Puerto Rico. CORCO will correct deficiencies in its Federal Response Plan (FRP) and Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) plan for the refinery and will pay a penalty of $42,000 for violating the federal Clean Water Act requirements.

If storage tanks contain oil, companies are required to respond to spills
Though the refinery is no longer operating, many of the storage tanks still contain oil, thus CORCO is still responsible for preventing and responding to spills from its tanks. Any facility that stores more than 1,320 gallons of oil or oil derivative in aboveground storage tanks must develop SPCC plans to prevent spills from occurring, and must implement these plans by installing secondary containment, such as concrete structures, around storage tanks and other areas where oil could be spilled.

Plans must be reviewed and kept updated
These plans must be certified by a professional engineer and must be reviewed at least once every three years. These facilities must also prepare response plans detailing the facility's ability to respond to oil spills, including identification of qualified response personnel and equipment, flowpath of potential spills and vulnerable natural resources, evacuation and notification plans, and response training programs, including drills and exercises.

CORCO's violations were discovered during an April 2000 inspection of the Penuelas refinery.

Edited by Tracy Fabre
Managing Editor, Water Online