The EPA has pushed the deadline for implementation of the Spill Prevention, Control and Countermeasures (SPCC) to May 2013.The SPCC targets the prevention of any discharge of oil into navigable waters or adjoining shorelines. Farmers and ranchers were among those who faced a Nov. 10 deadline to come up with a SPCC plan. The regulation says operations subject to the SPCC include "facilities that drill, produce, gather, store, use, process, refine, transfer, distribute or consume oil and oil products."
According to the EPA, facilities required to produce a plan had to meet three criteria:
- It must be non-transportation-related
- It must have an aggregate aboveground storage capacity greater than 1,320 gallons or a completely buried storage capacity greater than 42,000 gallons.
- There must be a reasonable expectation of a discharge into or upon navigable waters of the United States or adjoining shorelines.
The USA Rice Federation called the EPA's revised timeline a "major victory" and provided an EPA spokesperson's quote to help explain the agency's actions: '"An overwhelming segment of the continental United States was affected by flooding during the spring and summer of 2011. Other areas were impacted by devastating fires. Many counties in many states were declared disaster areas by either the federal or state government or both. As a result, EPA believes that because of their unique nature, farms have been disproportionately affected and need additional time to prepare and implement a Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure Plan."
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Posted 10/19/2011
