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The EPA Increases Compliance Checks

Recently it has been reported that there has been an increase in compliance checks for petroleum storage facilities in states such as Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas for environmental violations. This could potentially be the EPA’s response to the August 2025 Smitty’s Supply lubricant’s plant explosion in Roseland, La that polluted the Tangipahoa River and surrounding areas. This tragedy seems to have sparked a federal interest in wanting to crack down on the gaps in the federal oversight of bulk petroleum storage facilities, hence the EPA’s increase in compliance checks.
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It is said that the Energy Marketers of America (EMA) believe that the EPA will plan to target facilities commonly operated by petroleum marketers and bulk plants, including:
  • Loading and unloading racks
  • Transport truck staging areas
  • Commercial fueling sites with above ground storage tanks
 
What will an inspector be looking for?
Have the following on hand with up-to-date information:
  • Current Spill Prevention, Control and Counter measure plan (SPCC) - to include any SPCC amendments
  • Required professional engineer certification
  • Sufficient secondary containment
  • Integrity testing records
  • Employee training documentation
  • Loading/unloading area safety measures
It has been said by EMA that SPCC's statutory maximum penalties can exceed $66,000 per day.
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While the current focus appears to center on other areas of SPCC compliance, EMA believes that the EPA could also expand inspections into other regulatory areas such as:
  • Underground storage tank compliance
  • Facility Response Plan requirements
  • Emergency Planning and Right to Know Act reporting
  • Stormwater permitting requirements
 
Speaking of recent reports… Another recent report in our industry, the U.S. Department of Energy has put out more information on the recent cyber security attacks on automatic tank gauges. It was said that during their investigation that they found that the tanks that were attacked lacked one thing in common. A form of security code or password to not allow unauthorized internet access.
The attackers were able to access the automatic tank gauges (ATGs) remotely through an internet connection because the systems were exposed online without proper security protections such as passwords, firewalls, or restricted access controls.
 
The Energy Threat Analysis Center has since pushed out guidance to ATG owners, to help bring awareness to simple options for security including the following:
 
  • Do not directly expose the ATG serial port or any other applicable web interfaces on the device to the internet. 
  •  If remote access is necessary, use a firewall, an access control list or a VPN to limit access to the port and require a security code or password to access the serial port. 
  • Audit and monitor logs to identify exposure to ATG interfaces, unauthorized connections, suspicious alarms, alarm threshold changes, tank label changes and other system alterations.
 
Now, more than ever, is the time to take steps to stay in compliance, in good graces with regulatory agencies, and out of the hands of cybercriminals!
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