On July 12, 2024, the EPA announced a proposed settlement with OMG Partners of Turlock, California, to resolve claims of Clean Water Act (CWA) violations after one of the company’s tanker trucks overturned and a fuel product spilled into the roadway, Laguna Creek, Coyote Creek, and the Don Edwards National Wildlife Refuge. The fuel reached the San Francisco Bay. The proposed settlement requires OMG Partners to pay a civil penalty of $140,000.
“CWA Section 311(b)(3), 33 U.S.C. Section 1321(b)(3), prohibits ‘[t]he discharge of oil or hazardous substances into or upon the navigable waters of the United States [and] adjoining shorelines … in such quantities as may be harmful. …’ Pursuant to CWA Section 311(b)(6)(A), 33 U.S.C. Section 1321(b)(6)(A), any owner, operator, or person in charge of any vessel, onshore facility, or offshore facility from which oil is discharged in violation of CWA Section 311(b)(3), 33 U.S.C. Section 1321(b)(3), maybe assessed a Class I or Class II civil penalty,” states the EPA OMG public notice webpage.
According to the EPA, on December 24, 2021, one of OMG Partners’ trucks was transporting 8,500 gallons (gal) of unleaded gasoline when it overturned in Fremont, California, releasing approximately 7,900 gal of gasoline, some of which flowed to Laguna Creek and subsequently into the San Francisco Bay.
At the direction of the EPA and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Office of Spill Prevention and Response (OSPR), OMG Partners contractors placed booming in four locations: the main storm drain outfall, Laguna Creek, Agua Caliente, and Coyote Creek.
Booms
Booms are devices used to control the spread of spilled oil and fuel. They concentrate oil in thicker surface layers, making recovery easier. In addition, booms may be used to divert and channel oil slicks along desired paths, making them easier to remove from the surface of the water. Booms come in a variety of designs, according to the EPA, but all share the following four basic elements:
- An above-water “freeboard” to contain the oil and help prevent waves from splashing oil over the top of the boom.
- A flotation device.
- A below-water “skirt” to contain the oil and help reduce the amount of oil lost under the boom.
- A “longitudinal support,” usually a chain or cable running along the bottom of the skirt, that strengthens the boom against wind and wave action. The support may also serve as a weight or ballast to add stability and help keep the boom upright.
Booms can be divided into several basic types:
- Fence booms have a high freeboard and a flat flotation device, making them least effective in rough water, where wave and wind action can cause the boom to twist.
- Round or curtain booms have a more circular flotation device and a continuous skirt. They perform well in rough water but are more difficult to clean and store than fence booms.
- Non-rigid or inflatable booms come in many shapes. They’re easy to clean and store, and they perform well in rough seas. However, they tend to be expensive and more complicated to use and puncture and deflate easily.
All booms are affected by water conditions; the higher the waves swell, the less effective booms become.
Booms can be fixed to a structure, such as a pier or a buoy, or towed behind or alongside one or more vessels. Booms that are moored are anchored below the water surface, meaning they must be monitored frequently due to changes produced by shifting tides, tidal currents, winds, or other factors that influence water depth, direction, and force of motion. These forces may significantly impair a boom’s ability to hold oil. Most booms perform well in gentle seas with smooth, long waves. Generally, booms won’t operate properly when waves are higher than 1 meter or currents are moving faster than 1 knot per hour.
“When a spill occurs and no containment equipment is available, booms can be improvised from whatever materials are at hand,” the EPA advises on its boom webpage. “Improvised booms are made from such common materials as wood, plastic pipe, inflated fire hoses, automobile tires and empty oil drums. They can be as simple as a board placed across the surface of a slow-moving stream, or a berm built by bulldozers pushing a wall of sand out from the beach to divert oil from a sensitive section of shoreline.”
Proposed settlement
“Spilled fuel can cause severe harm to our waters, wildlife and ecosystems, so it’s imperative that it be transported in a safe manner,” said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman in an EPA news release. “With this proposed settlement, EPA is showing our commitment to holding accountable entities that pollute waterways in the San Francisco Bay watershed.”
Comments on the proposed settlement will be accepted until August 12, 2024. E-mail comments to attention Ponly Tu, Regional Hearing Clerk, at r9hearingclerk@epa.gov. Mailed comments are also sent to the attention of Ponly Tu, Regional Hearing Clerk, at U.S. EPA, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street (ORC-1), San Francisco, CA 94105. For more information, call 415-972-3153.