Petroleum Consulting and Managing

Increasing regulatory requirement will continue to be the increase the system requirements of anything you wish to install to handle petroleum products. From retail gas stations, to fleet fuel design we can provide you a detailed design to fit any location. We are well verse in the more stringent areas of North America, California and all the vapor recovery and double wall monitoring to New York City special UST requirements. We design our systems to the NFPA 30, NFPA 30a, NFPA 70 (NEC) and any local or state required additions, Let us do your home work and ensure your new or remodel facility meet all the required codes and requirements. Underground storage tank regulations are at the top of most regulatory hit list.

We can complete programs in multi-state or provinces, we have traveled to 46 or more of the United State and half the Canadian provinces conducting site visits and implementing designs in a timely manner. We run re branding projects, dispenser upgrades, UST upgrades, interior remodels, service lubrication facilities and more. If it is classified petroleum product that get use or sold we can design a cost effective system / facility for your needs

As Petroleum designers, we go above your regular compliance experts, not only can we inspect your facility and list your code and options at rick items, but design, contract and oversee the repairs of the work to reduce the clients head acks raise their level of comfort with their facilities, especially if the facilities are located coast to coast.

Our experienced and dedicated staff will review all regulatory compliance items and design repairs to bring all open compliance items at your facility up to local, state, and federal compliance standards. We can also assist you in your new building, including value engineering a cost effective system that will meet current code requirements.
 

Services include:

• Petroleum Bulk Storage Compliance Consulting
• AST storage compliance Consulting
• UST compliance Consulting
• On-site Petroleum Storage and system Inspections
• Regulatory Compliance Assistance
• Compliance Program Management
• Violation Corrections
• Shop Service building lubrication and air system consulting
• DEF retail and commercial dispenser system consulting
• Truck stop design and consulting
• Retail service station design and consulting
• Petroleum design guidelines (standards) review and updates
• Stage 2 upgrades and CARB compliance
• Petroleum system remodel and replacement design and consulting
• Project management of complete systems to small upgrades
• Multi site program and management consulting

• We provide in-house services to all types organizations in both the private and public sector. Retail and commercial, small, medium size and large corporations. Our experience, dedication and work ethic using advanced technology, latest codes and economical concepts to develop practical working projects continually benefit all our customers.
• Our philosophy towards customer service, striving for the best product, continued company growth, and development of our employees guarantees quality results to you, and your firm, project after project.
• We pride ourselves in our ability to upgrade ourselves, our knowledge and our continued development to improve the processes will provide quality services through innovation, creativity and dependability.

 

Brief summary of petroleum terms and items:

Common Petroleum Definitions

Underground Storage Tank (UST) – A tank that has 10 percent or more of its total volume (including connected piping) beneath the surface of the ground.
Release – any spill or leak from a tank or connected piping into the surrounding environment (i.e. onto the ground, or into subsurface soils or groundwater) resulting from structural failure or tank overfilling. A release includes visual or analytical verification of contamination discovered at the site, or failed line, or tank tightness test.
Secondary Containment – a physical barrier (i.e. double-wall, vault, catch basin or dike) surrounding a tank or piping designed to contain a leak or spill and prevent a direct release to the environment.
Release Detection – interstitial (between primary and secondary walls) monitoring or external sensing device (in a dike or vault) installed in the secondary containment of a tank system that activates a warning alarm when a leak from a tank or connected piping occurs.
Cathodic Protection - an electrochemical technique used to prevent surface metal corrosion of an underground steel tank or connected steel piping.

General Underground Storage Tanks (UST)

UST Overview

Federal UST regulations apply to tanks that:

• have over 110 gallons capacity
• have at least 10 percent of their volume (including piping) underground
• contain regulated substances, including petroleum products (gasoline, diesel fuel, used oil) and those regulated substances (hazardous chemicals) included in the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA).

All federally regulated USTs must:

• Be registered with EPA or State-approved program.
• Meet EPA's 1998 upgrade requirements for leak detection, spill, overfill, and corrosion protection
• Meet 2005 energy act.

Owners and operators must:

• Meet financial responsibility requirements
• Perform a site check and corrective action in response to leaks, spills, and overfills
• Replace or close USTs that do not meet the federal upgrade requirements

Some states have approval from the EPA to implement their own UST programs, but must have regulations equal to or more stringent than the federal regulations. States without an approved UST program are subject to the federal regulations, in addition to any state regulations that may apply.

UST Design Specifications

All existing federally regulated petroleum USTs must meet the following minimum design/construction requirements:

1. Tanks and connected piping must be equipped with secondary containment (double-walled or vault)
2. Tanks and connected piping must be equipped with a continuous leak detection system
3. Spill protection provided by a catch basin (spill bucket)
4. Overfill protection provided by an automatic shutoff device, overfill alarm, or ball float valve
5. Tank and connected piping have corrosion protection provided by one of the following:

• Made of non-corrosion material (fiberglass)
• Made with corrosion-resistant coating AND have cathodic protection

UST Installation

• All underground tank and piping systems must be installed in accordance with the American Petroleum Institute (API) Publications 1615 & RP100, ANSI piping standards B31.3 – B31.4, and with the manufacturer’s instructions.
• The owner and operator must ensure that a new tank system was properly installed according to one of the following:

• the installer was certified by the tank/piping manufacturer
• the installer was certified and licensed by the implementing agency
• the installation was inspected and certified by a registered professional engineer
• the installation was inspected and approved by the implementing agency
• the manufacturer’s installation checklist was completed

Aboveground Storage Tanks (AST)

AST Overview

There is no single, comprehensive regulation governing aboveground storage tanks (ASTs). Federal laws that regulate ASTs include the Clean Water Act, the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, the Clean Air Act, and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Many states and local authorities have more stringent requirements for ASTs as well, such as California’s Aboveground Petroleum Storage Act.

AST Design Specifications

Aboveground storage tanks must meet the following construction and technology standards:

• Underwriters Laboratory (UL) Standard 142, "Steel Aboveground Tanks for Flammable and Combustible Liquids" for single or double-wall tanks and Standard 2085 for tanks with fire protection insulation
• Steel Tank Institute (STI) F-921, "Standard for Aboveground Tanks with Integral Secondary Containment" and standard F-941 for tanks with fire protection insulation
• UL Subject 2244 (vehicle fueling stations) and NFPA 30 for "Aboveground Flammable Liquid Tank Systems" with fire-resistant / protected tanks
• Any applicable state and local fire safety, building, or construction codes

AST Installation

ASTs larger than 660 gallons in capacity must:

• have secondary containment - an integral double-wall design or single-wall with an impermeable lined concrete or steel dike having a spill capacity that is at least 125% of the total tank volume (or largest tank).
• have a spill catch basin, an overfill alarm, and a spill kit for at least 25 gallons of product.
• be installed on a concrete pad or floor designed to handle the weight of a full tank
• be adequately vented to prevent exceeding the design pressure of the tank during routine operation and emergency venting for excessive pressure due to fire exposure.

ASTs installed outside a building must be:

• protected against damage from an accidental collision with an outer concrete casing, secondary containment (dike/vault), or steel bumper posts (painted yellow) on the perimeter.
• located at least 30 feet from the nearest property line and 5 feet from the nearest building
• painted white to minimize product heat expansion and vapor loss
• installed in a secured area to protect against vandalism or product tampering

 

AST Preventative Maintenance & Testing

• All tank and connected piping must be tightness tested at operating pressure prior to service – (an ASME code stamped tank does not have to be tightness tested)

• All ASTs must be integrity tested at least once every ten years. A professional engineer must re-certify that the tank is structurally sound (thickness testing may be required to verify corrosion rate and remaining corrosion allowance) and capable of storing the product at storage tank operating conditions (temperature, pressure, etc.).

• Tank monitoring or leak detection systems (control panel lights, alarms, level sensors, leak probes, etc.) must be periodically serviced and maintained in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions, and performance tested at least annually to ensure the system is operating properly.

 

AST Weekly Inspections

The following weekly inspections must be conducted:

• Tank, pumps, and associated piping must be visually checked for spills, leaks, corrosion, and structural failure.

• Secondary containment (dikes or vaults) must be visually checked for spills or leaks.

• Leak detection monitoring systems for double walled tanks or piping must be checked to assure they are functioning properly and a leak has not occurred.

• The inside condition of a tank must be visually inspected whenever internal cleaning or repairs are required.

 

SPCC Plan for ASTs

Facilities are required to have a Spill Prevention, Control, & Countermeasure (SPCC) plan if the following conditions are met:

1. A tank release of harmful quantities of oil to nearby navigable waters is possible, and
2. Total AST oil capacity exceeding 1,320 gallons or a single tank exceeds 660 gallons

• SPCC plans need to be updated as tank equipment is added or moved, and as operation and maintenance procedures change.
• Plans must be evaluated every three yearsby a ProfessionalEngineer (PE), and amended within six months of the evaluation, if needed.

 

Signage (USTs & ASTs)

Both aboveground and underground storage tanks must have the following signage:

• API 1637 color/symbol system markings on fill ports to identify the petroleum products stored (i.e. gasoline, diesel fuel, fuel oil, kerosene) and
• chemical identification and hazard warning (NFPA 0-4 Hazard Rating diamond)
• confined space warning

 

Codes and References

• 40 CFR 280 – Underground Storage Tank (UST) Design, Construction, Operating Standards and Corrective Action Requirements
• 29 CFR 1910.106
• 40 CFR 112 – Spill Prevention Control & Countermeasure Plans (SPCC)
• NFPA 30 – Flammable and Combustible Liquid code
• NFPA 30A – Motor Fuel dispensing Facilities and repair garages
• NEC- National electrical code