MAHB Model Underground Storage Tank Regulations
9.0 PURPOSE
Whereas, leaking underground storage tanks pose an immediate and serious threat to the aquifer, and,
Whereas, the Town of ________ does not have records to locate all such tanks in the Town, The _________ Board of Health hereby adopts the following regulation to protect the ground and surface waters from contamination with liquid toxic or hazardous materials. The following regulations apply to all toxic or hazardous material storage systems:
9.10 INSTALLATION OF STORAGE TANKS
9.l1 Following the effective date of this regulation, the installation of all underground fuel, gasoline or other chemical storage tanks shall conform with the following criteria: In that the United States Environmental Protection Agency designated the Town of ___________ as overlying a sole source aquifer, secondary containment of tank and piping and an approved in-tank or interstitial space monitoring system shall be required for new or replacement tanks or pipes.
9.12 Following the effective date of this regulation, all tanks installed above ground outside shall be of material approved for outside use.
9.13 Tank Registration
The registration requirements shall apply to all underground tanks containing toxic or hazardous materials as defined above, which are not currently registered under 527 CMR 9.26 – Tanks and Containers (tanks storing fuel oil for consumptive use on the premises, and farm and residential tanks of l,l00 gallon capacity or less used for storing motor fuel for noncommercial purposes).
9.14 Owners shall file with the Board of Health, on or before __________, the size, type, contents, age and location of each tank. Evidence of date of installation, including fire department permit, if any, shall be included along with a sketch map showing the location of such tanks on the property. Upon registering the tank with the Board of Health, the tank owner will receive a permanent metal or plastic tag, embossed with a registration number unique to that tank. This registration tag must be attached to the fill pipe or in a location visible to fuel distributors and to any Town-authorized inspectors.
9.15 Effective ___________, every petroleum and other chemical distributor, when filling an underground storage tank, shall note on the invoice, the registration number appearing on the tank’s tag. Every petroleum and other chemical distributor shall notify the Board of Health of the existence and location of any unregistered or untagged tank which they are requested to fill. Such notification must be completed within two working days of the time the distributor discovers that the tank registration tag is not present.
9.16 Prior to the sale of property containing an underground storage tank, the current owner must file, with the local fire department, a change of ownership form for the underground storage tank. Such form can be obtained from the fire department. Prior to the closing date, all underground fuel tanks must be tested in accordance with section 3 of this regulation.
9.20 TESTING
9.2l The tank owner shall have each tank and its piping tested for tightness fifteen (l5) years after installation and annually after twenty (20) years. Tests shall be by any final or precision test, not involving air pressure, that can accurately detect a leak of 0.10 gal/hr, after adjustment for relevant variables, such as temperature change and tank end deflection, or by any other testing system approved by the Board of Health, as providing equivalent safety and effectiveness. Certification of the testing shall be submitted to the Board of Health by the owner, at the owner’s expense. Tanks subject to these testing requirements at the time of regulation passage shall submit their testing certification to the Board of Health by ____________ . Tanks currently tested under the provisions of 527 CMR 9.13 are exempt from this section.
9.30 MAINTENANCE OF FUEL STORAGE SYSTEMS
9.31 All underground fuel lines which do not have secondary containment shall be replaced with an approved double-containment system whenever any service to the system requiring a permit is performed.
9.32 All above-ground elements of fuel storage systems shall be maintained free of leaks and visible rust.
9.33 All in-tank or interstitial-space monitoring systems shall be checked on a monthly basis to verify system integrity. Records of these checks shall be sent to the Board of Health annually.
9.40 REPORT OF LEAKS OR SPILLS
9.4l Any person who is aware of a spill, loss of product, or unaccounted for increase in consumption which may indicate a leak shall report such spill, loss or increase immediately to the head of the fire department and to the Board of Health.
9.50 TANK REMOVAL
9.5l All underground fuel, gasoline or other chemical tanks not registered under 527 CMR 9.26 (farm or residential tanks of l,l00 gallons or less and underground tanks storing fuel for consumptive use at the property) in service on the effective date of this regulation, shall be removed thirty (30) years after the date of installation. If the date of installation is unknown, it shall be assumed to be _______ (20 years after effective date of regulation). All underground storage tanks currently subject to the removal regulation must be removed by __________ .
9.52 Prior to the removal of an underground storage tank governed by this regulation, the owner shall first obtain a permit from the head of the fire department, pursuant to M.G.L., C. l48.
9.53 Any person granted a permit by the Marshal or the head of a local fire department to remove a tank under the provisions of M.G.L., C. l48 or 527 CMR 9.00, shall, within 72 hours, provide the permit granting authority with a receipt for delivery of said tank to the site designated on the permit.
9.54 Before any person is granted a permit by the Marshal or the head of a local fire department to remove a tank, under the provisions of M.G.L., C. l48 or 527 CMR 9.00, and said tank is not being transported to an approved tank yard, the person requesting the permit shall provide the permit-granting authority with written approval from the owner/manager of the disposal site.
9.60 COSTS
9.61 In every case, the owner shall assume the responsibility for costs incurred necessary to comply with this regulation.
9.70 VARIANCES
9.7l Variances from this regulation may be granted by the Board of Health after a hearing at which the applicant establishes the following: (l) the enforcement thereof would do manifest injustice; and (2) installation or use of an underground storage tank will not adversely affect public or private water resources. In granting a variance, the Board will take into consideration the direction of the groundwater flow, soil conditions, depth to groundwater, size, shape and slope of the lot, and existing and known future water supplies.