NMPF Urges EPA to Exempt Bulk Milk Storage from SPCC Rule
June 4, 2010
NMPF Urges EPA to Exempt Bulk Milk Storage from SPCC Rule
The goal of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) program is to prevent oil spills into waters of the United States and adjoining shorelines. A key element of the program calls for farmers and other facilities to have an oil spill prevention plan, called an SPCC Plan. The SPCC plans are required for farms which have an aggregate storage capacity of oil products (including animal fats, i.e. milk) of 1320 gallons or more for every storage container larger than 55 gallons. This storage does not include vehicle storage capacity. A farm with less than 10,000 gallons of total storage capacity and no single storage greater than 5,000 gallons can self-certify their SPCC plan. Farms that do not meet this exemption must have a plan certified by a professional engineer.
On May 24, 2010, NMPF sent a letter to EPA requesting finalization for the bulk milk storage exemption from the SPCC rule. On January 15, 2009, EPA proposed to exempt bulk milk storage that is subject to the PMO from requirements of the SPCC to provide significant relief to dairy farmers by removing a great number from having to produce a SPCC plan (those under 1320 gallons of storage) and moving many more into the self-certification option, rather than requiring a professional engineer-certified plan. In the letter, NMPF requested that EPA finalize the exemption quickly, to allow dairy producers adequate time to comply with the SPCC regulatory deadline later this year.
Late in May, Rep. Candice Miller (R-MI) introduced H.R.5426 to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to finalize a proposed rule to amend the spill prevention, control, and countermeasure rule to tailor and streamline the requirements for the dairy industry. The legislation, supported by NMPF, directs EPA to finalize the bulk milk storage exemption for the SPCC rule and provides forbearance on regulatory actions until such time.
