Six Tips for a Successful LUST Closure
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Tip #1: Understand how the UST program works. Because of the number and diversity of underground storage tanks (USTs) in use nationwide, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recognized early on that state and local governments were in the best position to oversee UST programs. To ensure state programs met federal requirements, the EPA created the State Program Approval (SPA) process and, as of March 2014, 38 states, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico have approved state programs, allowing them to have the lead role in UST program enforcement. However, all states have UST cleanup programs, and states and territories that have not achieved SPA enter into grant/cooperative agreements with the EPA. The state program is designated as the primary implementing agency. In these non-SPA states, both federal and state regulations apply although state regulations are generally as or more stringent than the federal regulations.
Tip #2: LUST closure is just the final step in the process. Before a LUST closure can occur, any contamination of soil, surface water, groundwater, or air must meet a risk or cleanup threshold determined not to pose a threat to human health or the environment. At a LUST site this determination may involve reaching a targeted concentration for certain contaminants or reducing the risk of contamination to a specific threshold. As noted yesterday, risk-based decision making (RBDM) criteria may be used as a means for LUST owners and operators to undertake a quicker and more cost-effective site closure. Using RBDM, a LUST cleanup can be performed to a risk level that reflects the future use of the site rather than a generic, potentially more stringent cleanup level that may not be justified in the context of certain site uses.
Sometimes bad things do happen. If you’re an owner or operator of an underground storage tank (UST) system, there is always the possibility that you will experience a release at your facility. Register for this live webinar to learn how to effectively manage the corrective action process. Click here to register now!
Tip #3: Risk characterization is key to RBDM. Before any decisions can be made about the closure of a LUST site, many jurisdictions require risk characterization as necessary to complete corrective action and determine long-term risk to human health and the environment. Often performed by risk assessors or toxicologists, risk characterization evaluates human risks (such as via inhalation, skin, or ingestion) and may also analyze any potential carcinogenic threats to children and pregnant women from petroleum products. Environmental risks are also evaluated for impacts on vertebrates, invertebrates, plants, and their respective habitats. When a LUST closure is not based on risk, conservative thresholds established by government agencies must be met.
Tip #4: Maintenance of sampling points may be required. Ongoing sampling of groundwater and air for volatile vapors (vapor intrusion) may be required. These sampling points may require maintenance even after a LUST closure to allow owners, operators, or government entities an opportunity to confirm and reevaluate the decision to close a LUST site. For example, groundwater monitoring wells must be properly maintained at the ground surface to ensure that surface petroleum releases or contaminated stormwater do not flow into the wellboring and contaminate a clean groundwater resource.
Join us on Wednesday, October 15th for our LIVE webinar on Corrective Action Plans for Underground Storage Tanks! Sometimes bad things do happen, join this webinar to ensure that you get your company back in compliance as quickly as possible. Register here.
Tip #5: LUST closure requires documentation and reporting. Although requirements vary considerably, owners and operators closing a LUST should anticipate filing the following documentation:
- Narrative descriptions of the release,
- A full summary of assessments, corrective actions, maps, plans, and summaries of field and laboratory data,
- A data quality assessment, and
- A risk characterization.
As public records, closure reports remain open for inspection, and some jurisdictions may also require published legal notices, certified notifications, or notification of adjacent landowners when cleanup is finished.
Tip #6: Certificate of Closure. When final closure documentation is approved by the agency with jurisdiction, final approval may be certified in writing, providing a “liability endpoint that can be used for lending or conveyancing purposes.” Many agencies now require certification by a qualified professional (i.e., licensed professional) that a permanent closure has been achieved and that cleanup endpoints have been met. This certification may be subject to screening and audit at the discretion of the government agency.