SPCC Inspections
The purpose of the EPA’s Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure rule is to prevent oil contamination of navigable waterways and adjoining shorelines. Facilities which store or handle sufficient quantities of oil are required to create an SPCC plan, which includes inspection and testing procedures and schedules. The purpose of SPCC inspections is to prevent oil discharges due to container and equipment failures. Personnel conducting the inspections are trained to look for signs of corrosion, leaks, brittle fracture, overflows, and other problems.
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Learning Objectives
• List the key elements of an SPCC plan • List the inspection and testing requirements for SPCC- regulated facilities • Define the terms “baseline conditions” and “brittle fracture” • List the factors which influence the frequency and scope of tests and inspections at SPCC-regulated facilities • Describe common elements of monthly SPCC inspections • Describe common elements of annual SPCC inspections
Specs
| Course Level | Intermediate |
| Languages | English |
| Compatibility | Audio, Video |
| Based on: | 40 CFR 112 (2016): Oil Pollution Prevention |
Key Questions
What types of facilities are subject to the SPCC rule?
A “facility” can be any non-transportation-related “mobile or fixed, onshore or offshore building, property, parcel, lease, structure, installation, equipment, pipe, or pipeline” that is involved in oil-related activities, including oil production, refining, storage, use, consumption, processing, distribution, waste treatment, and well drilling.
How much oil must a facility store to be subject to the SPCC rule?
Facilities with an aggregate oil storage capacity exceeding 1,320 gallons aboveground or 42,000 gallons underground, which also have a “reasonable expectation of an oil discharge,” are subject to the SPCC rule.
What are “baseline conditions”?
“Baseline conditions” indicate existing equipment conditions, and they can be used for comparison with future testing and inspection results. For tanks, they can be determined by performing integrity tests and measuring shell and bottom plate thicknesses.
Why is it important to test for the presence of water in fuel tanks and containment structures?
The presence of water and fuel in steel tanks and containment structures can lead to Microbial Induced Corrosion (MIC). That is why it is important to remove water and other liquids from steel tanks and containment structures that also contain fuel.
What is “brittle fracture”?
Field-erected aboveground storage tanks have occasionally been subject to a phenomena known as “brittle fracture.” These clean breaks in the metal can develop during service or be caused by defects introduced during fabrication.
Sample Video Transcript
The frequency and scope of SPCC tests and inspections vary from site to site because they depend on many different things, including but not limited to: original construction, for example, welded versus riveted and shop-built versus field-built, service history, equipment age, previous inspection results, and equipment location and degree of risk. Because some of these variables can change over time, inspection frequencies can also change over time. This is another important reason to keep inspection checklists up to date.
Additional Resources
- US Government Publishing Office (GPO) – www.gpo.gov
- Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (e-CFR) – www.ecfr.gov
- Title 40, Chap. I, Subchapter D, Part 112 – http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title40/40cfr112_main_02.tpl
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