PETROLEUM RELEASES: WHAT MUST BE DONE?

INTRODUCTION

This document will briefly address the State of Montana's regulation of petroleum releases and the process that must take place when a release occurs. Its intent is to summarize the requirements of the Petroleum Technical Section (PTS) of the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and to assist the reader in the use of the attached help sheets and Technical Guidance Documents.

REPORTING A RELEASE

Petroleum releases must be reported to the PTS within 24 hours of being detected as required by ARM 17.56.501 (1-800-457-0568). This is extremely important with regards to environmental concerns, cleanup cost effectiveness, and Petroleum Tank Release Cleanup Fund (PTRCF) reimbursement. Any owner, operator, installer, subsurface investigator, or tank/line tester must report a release whether it is suspected or known (confirmed).  Any spills or overfills of a petroleum over 25 gallons is automatically considered a release.  Owners and operators must contain and immediately clean up a spill or overfill of a petroleum that is less than 25 gallons within 24 hours of the spill.  A release less than 25 gallons is considered a release if the spill or overfill cannot be cleaned up in 24 hours, or if it causes a sheen on nearby surface waters, or if it equals or exceeds its reportable quantity under CERCLA (ARM 17.56.505). 

Technical Guidance Document #3 describes what subsurface observations indicate a release, such as soil staining or hydrocarbon odors. Other observations that could signify a release include failure of tank/line tightness tests, loss of inventory, petroleum odors in basements, and other obvious occurrences such as a surface spill. If any of these conditions are observed, the release must be called in within 24 hours. If there is doubt as to whether a release has occurred, it is always in the tank owner/operator's best interest to report it.

If a release is not evident during tank or line removals, but closure sample laboratory results exceed DEQ action levels, a release is considered to have occurred. Be sure the licensed remover hired not only takes the appropriate samples required by the closure permit, but reports to the DEQ within 24 hours upon receipt of results that exceed DEQ action levels! Technical Guidance Document #7 discusses DEQ action levels for soil and groundwater.

Immediate response and abatement of the petroleum release must ensue upon its detection (see Montana Petroleum Release Response Requirements). These measures include preventing further release and migration of the product, mitigating fire, explosion, and vapor hazards, and determination of impacts to drinking water sources.

When a release is called in, a PTS case manager will write down all pertinent information and give instructions for any immediate action beyond the emergency response. If work does not constitute an emergency response, always obtain prior PTS approval.

THE 30-DAY RELEASE REPORT

After a release is reported, the DEQ will send the responsible party (RP) a 30-Day Release Report form to complete and submit within 30 days. In the event that the release is suspected but not confirmed, the DEQ will issue the RP a letter requiring investigation and confirmation of the release within seven days.

THE REMEDIAL INVESTIGATION

Upon receipt and evaluation of the 30-Day Release Report form, the DEQ will determine whether further action is warranted. If further work is not needed, the release will be closed at that time. If further investigation must occur, the DEQ will send the RP a letter stating the DEQ's requirements for a remedial investigation at the release site. The RP will need to hire a qualified consultant to conduct the remedial investigation and have that consultant submit a work plan within 30 days to the DEQ.

The DEQ will either approve the work plan, approve the plan given certain modifications, or disapprove the plan. Typically, a plan is approved as is, or approved with a few changes. If the release has been determined eligible for reimbursement from the PTRCF, then the work plan will also be reviewed by the Petroleum Tank Release Compensation Board.

After DEQ approval of the work plan, the consultant will then conduct the remedial investigation, and upon completion, submit to the DEQ and RP a report containing the results of the remedial investigation plus recommendations for further work. Remedial investigations may include soil test pits, soil borings, and groundwater monitoring wells as well as other techniques. All investigations include the laboratory analysis of soil and/or groundwater samples for contaminants. Typical laboratory analyses that may be required include VPH (volatile petroleum hydrocarbons), EPH (extractable petroleum hydrocarbons), and MBTEXN (methyl tertiary butyl ether, benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylene, and naphthalene).

CORRECTIVE ACTION

The DEQ case manager for the given release will review the remedial investigation report, and will determine whether corrective action is needed. The DEQ will issue the RP a letter requiring corrective action if cleanup is necessary. The RP will have their consultant submit a corrective action work plan which will be reviewed in the same manner as the remedial investigation work plan, approval given, and the work completed. The consultant will submit a report to the DEQ and RP stating the results of the corrective action and any recommendations.

Types of corrective action that may be instituted include overexcavation, which is the digging up and proper disposal of contaminated soil (see Technical Guidance Document #6 and Listing of Existing Permitted Soil Treatment Facilities); soil vapor extraction, which enhances volatilization of contaminants in the soil; bioventing, which enhances biodegradation of contaminants in the soil; air sparging, which enhances volatilization of contaminants in the groundwater as well as the soil; biosparging, which enhances biodegradation of contaminants in groundwater; and natural attenuation, which measures parameters indicative of naturally occurring adsorption, biodegradation, volatilization, and dispersion. There are other technologies for petroleum release cleanups in addition to those listed here.

RELEASE CLOSURE

Investigation and cleanup efforts will continue until the release site is clean or the DEQ Closure Committee determines that all cleanup feasible and necessary to protect human health and the environment has been completed. The DEQ Closure Committee utilizes documents such as Montana Numeric Water Quality Standards and Montana RBCA Tier I Look-Up Tables in making its decision.

Upon release closure, the DEQ will issue the RP a "No Further Corrective Action" letter (see Technical Guidance Document #9). This letter states that no further investigation or cleanup activities are required based on the available information. The closure letter also states that the RP may still be responsible for any damages not yet identified resulting from leaks, spills, or improper closure of tanks. Questions regarding this document should be directed to the PTS (1-800-457-0568).

(Note: Not all written materials referenced on this page are currently available through this web site.)