§118.13. Facility response training, drills, and exercises. — Inbound Citations

(b) To determine the distance to endpoints for fish, wildlife, and sensitive environments, public water systems, and public receptors as referenced in § 118.3(c), an owner or operator shall use a methodology, model, or other technique that accounts for facility-specific conditions and accounts for the stated requirements in this paragraph. An owner or operator may use proprietary models, provided that the owner or operator allows EPA access to the model, submits documentation that demonstrates the reliability and analytical soundness of the methodology used, and describes the model's features to local emergency planners, upon request. Any models used for planning distance determinations shall be used in exercises conducted per § 118.13.

(3) In determining CWA hazardous substance planning distance endpoints, owners or operators shall consider the following parameters:

(A) Nearest opportunity for discharge into or on the navigable waters;

(B) Ground conditions which may include topography of the surrounding area, drainage patterns, land use coverage, impervious cover, soil distribution or porosity, and soil absorption rate or soil saturation during adverse weather conditions; and

(C) Properties of the CWA hazardous substance, which may include evaporation rate based on wind speed; atmospheric stability, ambient temperature, pressure, and humidity; reactivity with rainwater and/or other substances along the overland flow path into or on the navigable water; and ignitability and explosive potential;

(A) Point of entry to navigable waters;

(B) Flow rate and duration of the discharge;

(C) Direction of the discharge at the point of entry;

(D) Surface versus underwater entry; and

(E) Conditions of the receiving water including the velocity of the navigable waters which may be affected by: Slope of the river; hydraulic radius; turbulence and potential for cross-channel mixing; Manning's Roughness coefficient; differentiation of still, tidal or moving waters; currents; wave height; tidal influence; and water temperature, pH, alkalinity, and salinity.

(iii) Adverse weather conditions, which shall be calculated based on adverse winds, currents, and/or river stages, over a range of seasons, weather conditions, and river stages.

(iv) Properties of the CWA hazardous substance such as solubility in water, speciation in water, density (relative to water), polarity, vapor pressure, reactivity with water and common solutes in natural waterbodies, human toxicity, mammalian toxicity, aquatic toxicity, and flammability.

(16) Training procedures as per § 118.13;

(c) Coordination shall include consulting with appropriate State, local, or Tribal emergency response officials to establish appropriate schedules and plans for drills and exercises required under § 118.13. The owner or operator shall request an opportunity to meet with the Local Emergency Planning Committee or Tribal Emergency Planning Committee (or equivalent) and/or local fire department as appropriate to review and discuss those materials.