7 Del. Admin. Code § 1203-2.0

Current through Reigster Vol. 28, No. 6, December 1, 2024

Section 1203-2.0 - Reporting Requirements

2.1 Applicability

2.1.1 Unless otherwise stated in this Section, any person who causes or contributes to an environmental release or to the discharge of an air contaminant into the air or a pollutant, including petroleum substances, into surface water, groundwater or land in excess of any DRQ specified under this Regulation, shall report such discharge to the Department as soon as the person has knowledge of said environmental release or discharge while activating the appropriate emergency site plan unless circumstances exist which make such a notification impossible. A delay in notification shall not be considered to be a violation of this Regulation when the act of reporting may delay the mitigation of the discharge and/or the protection of public health and the environment.

2.1.2 Discharge in compliance with a validly issued state or federal permit(s) or in compliance with other state and federal regulations is exempt from the reporting requirements of this Regulation. This Regulation does not apply to natural gas and propane gas pipelines subject to overshight or regulation under the Federal Energy Regulatory commission (FERC) or the Federal Department of Transportation's Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS).

2.1.3 An owner or operator responsible for a transportation related discharge may meet the requirements of this Regulation by providing the information indicated in 2.4 to the 911 operator and, if applicable, to the responding Department representative at the scene. For the purposes of this paragraph, a "transportation related discharge" means a discharge during transportation when the stored chemical or substance is moving under active shipping papers and has not reached the ultimate consignee.

2.1.4 This Regulation does not apply to the proper application of a pesticide product registered under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 136 et. seq. as amended August 3, 1996).

2.1.5 Any discharge that is continuous and stable in quantity and rate under the definitions in 40 CFR 302.8(b) is exempt from reporting requirements of this regulation except:

2.1.5.1 Initial notifications as required by 40 CFR part 302.8(d) and (e).

2.1.5.2 "statistically significant increase" as defined in 40 CFR 302.8(b),

2.1.5.3 notification of a "new release" as defined in 40 CFR 302.8(g) (1), or

2.1.5.4 notification of a change in the normal range of the release as required under 40 CFR 302.8(g) (2).

2.1.5.5 Telephone notification required by 40 CFR 302.8 to the State of Delaware State Emergency Response Commission (SERC) shall be fulfilled by notifying the Department. Written notification reports required by 40 CFR 302.8 and sent to the EPA regional office shall serve as written notification to the State of Delaware SERC when copied to the Department. (Reference: 40 CFR 302.8 as promulgated on July 24, 1990).

2.2 Discharges (including petroleum substances) that are wholly contained within a building are exempt from the reporting requirements of this Regulation. Should such a wholly contained discharge be discharged outside the building at a later time for any reason, that eventual discharge, when exceeding the DRQ, shall activate these reporting requirements.

2.3 Reserved

2.4 For the purpose of this regulation, notification of any reportable incident under Sections 2.1 or 2.4 by a person to the Department can be in person to Department staff or by telephone communication to the Department's Environmental Emergency Notification and Complaint Number. The notification must contain the following information which details the facts and circumstances of the discharge to the maximum extent practicable at the time of notice:

2.4.1 Facility name and/or location of the discharge.

2.4.2 Type of incident, e.g. discharge, fire, explosion, associated with discharge and whether assistance from outside emergency responders, e.g. 911, has been requested.

2.4.3 The chemical or substance involved with the incident of discharge including the Chemical Abstract System (CAS) number for the chemical or of the constituent chemicals when a mixture is discharged.

2.4.4 An indication of whether the chemical or chemicals are an extremely hazardous substance.

2.4.5 An estimate of the quantity of any such chemical(s) or substance(s) that was discharged into the environment.

2.4.6 The beginning time and the duration of the discharge.

2.4.7 The medium or media, e.g. soil, groundwater, surface water, air, etc., into which the discharge occurred.

2.4.8 Any known or anticipated acute or chronic health risks associated with the emergency and, where appropriate, advice regarding medical attention necessary for exposed individuals.

2.4.9 Proper precautions to take as a result of the discharge, including evacuation The name(s) and telephone number(s) of the person(s) to be contacted for further information.

2.4.10 Such other information as the Department may require.

2.5 Except for petroleum substances, sewage, or infectious waste releases, as soon as practical but no later than 30 days after a release of a DRQ of a listed substance, such person, owner or operator shall provide a written follow-up report to the Department updating the information required under section 2.4 and including the following additional information to the extent known:

2.5.1 Part I.

2.5.1.1 Actions taken to respond to and contain the release in the form of a chronology,

2.5.1.2 Any known or anticipated acute or chronic health risks associated with the release, and

2.5.1.3 Where appropriate, advice regarding medical attention necessary for exposed individuals.

2.5.2 Part II.

2.5.2.1 The facts and circumstances leading to the environmental release including a detailed identification of the pathway through which the discharge to the environment occurred and potential environmental impacts,

2.5.2.2 Measures proposed to prevent such a discharge from occurring in the future and to remedy the deficiencies, if any, in the prevention, detection, response containment, cleanup or removal plan components,

2.5.2.3 Such other information which the Department may require.

2.5.3 Except where Part II information is of confidential nature as defined in 7 Del.C., § 6014, all written information obtained through this subsection shall be made available to Local Emergency Planning Committees (LEPCs) and the public.

2.6 The Department reserves the right to require a written report for any environmental release, regardless of the substance or quantity, if there is concern for public health and safety or environmental welfare has been adversely affected. At the Department's discretion, the Department may require said person to file a written follow-up report, within 30 days or any shorter time as required by validly issued state or federal permits or by any pertinent regulations, setting forth all details contained in Sections 2.4 and 2.5.

2.7 The written report shall be in a format approved by the Department and submitted to the appropriate addresses for report submissions provided by the Department. The Department may establish procedures for notification and submission of written reports by computerized and electronic methods, including but not limited to, the submission of information through the internet.

7 Del. Admin. Code § 1203-2.0

6 DE Reg. 661 (11/1/02)