What is a Spill Prevention, Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) Plan?

The Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) Plan is intended to prevent any discharge of oil into or upon navigable waters of the United States or adjoining shorelines. The SPCC Plan addresses topics such as spill prevention planning, response training, and mitigation planning and preparation. In most cases the program is managed by the US EPA. For more information check out their SPCC Plan Guidance

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Who is required to have a Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) Plan?

Before a facility is subject to the SPCC rule, it must meet three criteria:   1) it must be non-transportation-related; 2) it must have an aggregate aboveground storage capacity greater than 1,320 gallons or a completely buried storage capacity greater than 42,000 gallons; and 3) there must be a reasonable expectation of a discharge into or upon navigable waters of the United States or adjoining shorelines. The director or the director's designee may also require an SPCC plan from facilities not meeting the criteria on a case by case basis.

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What must an SPCC Plan include?

The Oil Pollution Prevention regulation requires that the SPCC Plan be carefully thought out, prepared in accordance with good engineering practices, and be approved by a person with the authority to commit the resources necessary to implement the SPCC Plan. The SPCC Plan should clearly address the following three areas:

• Operating procedures that prevent oil spills;
• Control measures installed to prevent a spill from reaching navigable waters; and
• Countermeasures to contain, clean up, and mitigate the effects of an oil spill that reaches navigable waters.

Each SPCC Plan must be unique to the facility. Development of a unique SPCC Plan requires detailed knowledge of the facility and the potential effects of any oil spill. Each SPCC plan, while unique to the facility it covers, must include certain standard elements to ensure compliance with the regulations. These elements include:

An SPCC Plan should include the following information and should follow the sequence outlined below:

• A list of the facility's equipment and oil capacities.
• Written descriptions of any spills occurring within the past year, corrective actions taken, and plans for preventing their reoccurrence.
• A prediction of the direction, rate of flow, and total quantity of oil that could be discharged where experience indicates a potential for equipment failure.
• A description of containment and/or diversionary structures or equipment to prevent discharged oil from reaching navigable waters. (For on-shore facilities, one of the following should be used as a minimum: dikes, berms, or retaining walls; curbing; culverts, gutters, or other drainage systems; weirs, booms, or other barriers; spill diversion ponds; retention ponds; absorbent materials.)
• Where appropriate, a demonstration that containment and/or diversionary structures or equipment are not practical and a strong oil spill contingency plan and a written commitment of manpower, equipment, and materials to quickly control and remove spilled oil.
• A complete discussion of the spill prevention and control measures applicable to the facility and/or its operations.

The SPCC Plan should be signed by the facility manager and be certified by a registered professional engineer

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