The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) promulgated the original Spill Prevention, Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) Plan rule in 1973. In 2002, EPA amended the rule, which became effective 16 August 2002. EPA postponed the revised rule compliance dates three times since promulgation and has proposed a fourth extension. In addition, EPA proposed and promulgated modifications to the revised rule to make the impact less severe on farmers, electric utilities, airport operators, and small businesses. The rule modifications were promulgated 26 December 2006. Also, EPA proposed a new implementation date of 1 July 2009, but the implementation date of 31 October 2007 remains until the proposed revised date is promulgated. EPA states additional rule modifications will be proposed during 2007. Most businesses are reluctant to prepare SPCC Plans for facilities, since the contents of the final rule, if modified, are not known. This paper reviews the 1) history of the SPCC Plan rule, 2) Agency’s action to make the rule more palatable to a few selected stakeholders, 3) EPA modifications, 4) comments associated with the proposals to the EPA Dockets and 5) author’s suggestions for compliance.
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