Title 30: Mineral Resources
PART 250—OIL AND GAS AND SULPHUR OPERATIONS IN THE OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF
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Subpart C—Pollution Prevention and Control
§ 250.300 Pollution prevention.
(a) During the exploration, development, production, and transportation of oil and gas or sulphur, the lessee shall take measures to prevent unauthorized discharge of pollutants into the offshore waters. The lessee shall not create conditions that will pose unreasonable risk to public health, life, property, aquatic life, wildlife, recreation, navigation, commercial fishing, or other uses of the ocean.
(1) When pollution occurs as a result of operations conducted by or on behalf of the lessee and the pollution damages or threatens to damage life (including fish and other aquatic life), property, any mineral deposits (in areas leased or not leased), or the marine, coastal, or human environment, the control and removal of the pollution to the satisfaction of the District Manager shall be at the expense of the lessee. Immediate corrective action shall be taken in all cases where pollution has occurred. Corrective action shall be subject to modification when directed by the District Manager.
(2) If the lessee fails to control and remove the pollution, the Director, in cooperation with other appropriate Agencies of Federal, State, and local governments, or in cooperation with the lessee, or both, shall have the right to control and remove the pollution at the lessee's expense. Such action shall not relieve the lessee of any responsibility provided for by law.
(b)(1) The District Manager may restrict the rate of drilling fluid discharges or prescribe alternative discharge methods. The District Manager may also restrict the use of components which could cause unreasonable degradation to the marine environment. No petroleum-based substances, including diesel fuel, may be added to the drilling mud system without prior approval of the District Manager.
(2) Approval of the method of disposal of drill cuttings, sand, and other well solids shall be obtained from the District Manager.
(3) All hydrocarbon-handling equipment for testing and production such as separators, tanks, and treaters shall be designed, installed, and operated to prevent pollution. Maintenance or repairs which are necessary to prevent pollution of offshore waters shall be undertaken immediately.
(4) Curbs, gutters, drip pans, and drains shall be installed in deck areas in a manner necessary to collect all contaminants not authorized for discharge. Oil drainage shall be piped to a properly designed, operated, and maintained sump system which will automatically maintain the oil at a level sufficient to prevent discharge of oil into offshore waters. All gravity drains shall be equipped with a water trap or other means to prevent gas in the sump system from escaping through the drains. Sump piles shall not be used as processing devices to treat or skim liquids but may be used to collect treated-produced water, treated-produced sand, or liquids from drip pans and deck drains and as a final trap for hydrocarbon liquids in the event of equipment upsets. Improperly designed, operated, or maintained sump piles which do not prevent the discharge of oil into offshore waters shall be replaced or repaired.
(5) On artificial islands, all vessels containing hydrocarbons shall be placed inside an impervious berm or otherwise protected to contain spills. Drainage shall be directed away from the drilling rig to a sump. Drains and sumps shall be constructed to prevent seepage.
(6) Disposal of equipment, cables, chains, containers, or other materials into offshore waters is prohibited.
(c) Materials, equipment, tools, containers, and other items used in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) which are of such shape or configuration that they are likely to snag or damage fishing devices shall be handled and marked as follows:
(1) All loose material, small tools, and other small objects shall be kept in a suitable storage area or a marked container when not in use and in a marked container before transport over offshore waters;
(2) All cable, chain, or wire segments shall be recovered after use and securely stored until suitable disposal is accomplished;
(3) Skid-mounted equipment, portable containers, spools or reels, and drums shall be marked with the owner's name prior to use or transport over offshore waters; and
(4) All markings must clearly identify the owner and must be durable enough to resist the effects of the environmental conditions to which they may be exposed.
(d) Any of the items described in paragraph (c) of this section that are lost overboard shall be recorded on the facility's daily operations report, as appropriate, and reported to the District Manager.
[53 FR 10690, Apr. 1, 1988, as amended at 56 FR 32099, July 15, 1991. Redesignated at 63 FR 29479, May 29, 1998]
§ 250.301 Inspection of facilities.
(a) Drilling and production facilities shall be inspected daily or at intervals approved or prescribed by the District Manager to determine if pollution is occurring. Necessary maintenance or repairs shall be made immediately. Records of such inspections and repairs shall be maintained at the facility or at a nearby manned facility for 2 years.
[53 FR 10690, Apr. 1, 1988, as amended at 62 FR 13996, Mar. 25, 1997. Redesignated at 63 FR 29479, May 29, 1998]
§ 250.302 Definitions concerning air quality.
For purposes of §§250.303 and 250.304 of this part:
Air pollutant means any combination of agents for which the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has established, pursuant to section 109 of the Clean Air Act, national primary or secondary ambient air quality standards.
Attainment area means, for any air pollutant, an area which is shown by monitored data or which is calculated by air quality modeling (or other methods determined by the Administrator of EPA to be reliable) not to exceed any primary or secondary ambient air quality standards established by EPA.
Best available control technology (BACT) means an emission limitation based on the maximum degree of reduction for each air pollutant subject to regulation, taking into account energy, environmental and economic impacts, and other costs. The BACT shall be verified on a case-by-case basis by the Regional Supervisor and may include reductions achieved through the application of processes, systems, and techniques for the control of each air pollutant.
Emission offsets means emission reductions obtained from facilities, either onshore or offshore, other than the facility or facilities covered by the proposed Exploration Plan or Development and Production Plan.
Existing facility is an OCS facility described in an Exploration Plan or a Development and Production Plan submitted or approved prior to June 2, 1980.
Facility means any installation or device permanently or temporarily attached to the seabed which is used for exploration, development, and production activities for oil, gas, or sulphur and which emits or has the potential to emit any air pollutant from one or more sources. All equipment directly associated with the installation or device shall be considered part of a single facility if the equipment is dependent on, or affects the processes of, the installation or device. During production, multiple installations or devices will be considered to be a single facility if the installations or devices are directly related to the production of oil, gas, or sulphur at a single site. Any vessel used to transfer production from an offshore facility shall be considered part of the facility while physically attached to it.
Nonattainment area means, for any air pollutant, an area which is shown by monitored data or which is calculated by air quality modeling (or other methods determined by the Administrator of EPA to be reliable) to exceed any primary or secondary ambient air quality standard established by EPA.
Projected emissions means emissions, either controlled or uncontrolled, from a source(s).
Source means an emission point. Several sources may be included within a single facility.
Temporary facility means activities associated with the construction of platforms offshore or with facilities related to exploration for or development of offshore oil and gas resources which are conducted in one location for less than 3 years.
Volatile organic compound (VOC) means any organic compound which is emitted to the atmosphere as a vapor. The unreactive compounds are exempt from the above definition.
[53 FR 10690, Apr. 1, 1988, as amended at 56 FR 32100, July 15, 1991. Redesignated and amended at 63 FR 29479, 29485, May 29, 1998]
§ 250.303 Facilities described in a new or revised Exploration Plan or Development and Production Plan.
(a) New plans. All Exploration Plans and Development and Production Plans shall include the information required to make the necessary findings under paragraphs (d) through (i) of this section, and the lessee shall comply with the requirements of this section as necessary.
(b) Applicability of §250.303 to existing facilities. (1) The Regional Supervisor may review any Exploration Plan or Development and Production Plan to determine whether any facility described in the plan should be subject to review under this section and has the potential to significantly affect the air quality of an onshore area. To make these decisions, the Regional Supervisor shall consider the distance of the facility from shore, the size of the facility, the number of sources planned for the facility and their operational status, and the air quality status of the onshore area.
(2) For a facility identified by the Regional Supervisor in paragraph (b)(1) of this section, the Regional Supervisor shall require the lessee to refer to the information required in §250.218 or §250.249 of this part and to submit only that information required to make the necessary findings under paragraphs (d) through (i) of this section. The lessee shall submit this information within 120 days of the Regional Supervisor's determination or within a longer period of time at the discretion of the Regional Supervisor. The lessee shall comply with the requirements of this section as necessary.
(c) Revised facilities. All revised Exploration Plans and Development and Production Plans shall include the information required to make the necessary findings under paragraphs (d) through (i) of this section. The lessee shall comply with the requirements of this section as necessary.
(d) Exemption formulas. To determine whether a facility described in a new, modified, or revised Exploration Plan or Development and Production Plan is exempt from further air quality review, the lessee shall use the highest annual-total amount of emissions from the facility for each air pollutant calculated in §250.249(a) or §250.218(a) of this part and compare these emissions to the emission exemption amount “E” for each air pollutant calculated using the following formulas: E=3400D2/3 for carbon monoxide (CO); and E=33.3D for total suspended particulates (TSP), sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOX), and VOC (where E is the emission exemption amount expressed in tons per year, and D is the distance of the proposed facility from the closest onshore area of a State expressed in statute miles). If the amount of these projected emissions is less than or equal to the emission exemption amount “E” for the air pollutant, the facility is exempt from further air quality review required under paragraphs (e) through (i) of this section.
(e) Significance levels. For a facility not exempt under paragraph (d) of this section for air pollutants other than VOC, the lessee shall use an approved air quality model to determine whether the projected emissions of those air pollutants from the facility result in an onshore ambient air concentration above the following significance levels:
Significance Levels: Air pollutant concentrations (µg/m\3\)------------------------------------------------------------------------ Averaging time (hours) Air pollutant ----------------------------- Annual 24 8 3 1------------------------------------------------------------------------SO2....................................... 1 5 ... 25 ......TSP....................................... 1 5 ... .. ......NO2....................................... 1 .. ... .. ......CO........................................ ....... .. 500 .. 2,000------------------------------------------------------------------------
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(f) Significance determinations. (1) The projected emissions of any air pollutant other than VOC from any facility which result in an onshore ambient air concentration above the significance level determined under paragraph (e) of this section for that air pollutant, shall be deemed to significantly affect the air quality of the onshore area for that air pollutant.
(2) The projected emissions of VOC from any facility which is not exempt under paragraph (d) of this section for that air pollutant shall be deemed to significantly affect the air quality of the onshore area for VOC.
(g) Controls required. (1) The projected emissions of any air pollutant other than VOC from any facility, except a temporary facility, which significantly affect the quality of a nonattainment area, shall be fully reduced. This shall be done through the application of BACT and, if additional reductions are necessary, through the application of additional emission controls or through the acquisition of offshore or onshore offsets.
(2) The projected emissions of any air pollutant other than VOC from any facility which significantly affect the air quality of an attainment or unclassifiable area shall be reduced through the application of BACT.
(i) Except for temporary facilities, the lessee also shall use an approved air quality model to determine whether the emissions of TSP or SO2 that remain after the application of BACT cause the following maximum allowable increases over the baseline concentrations established in 40 CFR 52.21 to be exceeded in the attainment or unclassifiable area:
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Maximum allowable concentration increases (µg/m\3\)------------------------------------------------------------------------ Averaging times -------------------------- Air pollutant Annual mean 24-hour 3-hour \1\ maximum maximum------------------------------------------------------------------------Class I: TSP........................................ 5 10 ....... SO2........................................ 2 5 25Class II: TSP........................................ 19 37 ....... SO2........................................ 20 91 512Class III: TSP........................................ 37 75 ....... SO2........................................ 40 182 700------------------------------------------------------------------------\1\ For TSP_geometric; For SO2_arithmetric.
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No concentration of an air pollutant shall exceed the concentration permitted under the national secondary ambient air quality standard or the concentration permitted under the national primary air quality standard, whichever concentration is lowest for the air pollutant for the period of exposure. For any period other than the annual period, the applicable maximum allowable increase may be exceeded during one such period per year at any one onshore location.
(ii) If the maximum allowable increases are exceeded, the lessee shall apply whatever additional emission controls are necessary to reduce or offset the remaining emissions of TSP or SO2 so that concentrations in the onshore ambient air of an attainment or unclassifiable area do not exceed the maximum allowable increases.
(3)(i) The projected emissions of VOC from any facility, except a temporary facility, which significantly affect the onshore air quality of a nonattainment area shall be fully reduced. This shall be done through the application of BACT and, if additional reductions are necessary, through the application of additional emission controls or through the acquisition of offshore or onshore offsets.
(ii) The projected emissions of VOC from any facility which significantly affect the onshore air quality of an attainment area shall be reduced through the application of BACT.
(4)(i) If projected emissions from a facility significantly affect the onshore air quality of both a nonattainment and an attainment or unclassifiable area, the regulatory requirements applicable to projected emissions significantly affecting a nonattainment area shall apply.
(ii) If projected emissions from a facility significantly affect the onshore air quality of more than one class of attainment area, the lessee must reduce projected emissions to meet the maximum allowable increases specified for each class in paragraph (g)(2)(i) of this section.
(h) Controls required on temporary facilities. The lessee shall apply BACT to reduce projected emissions of any air pollutant from a temporary facility which significantly affect the air quality of an onshore area of a State.
(i) Emission offsets. When emission offsets are to be obtained, the lessee must demonstrate that the offsets are equivalent in nature and quantity to the projected emissions that must be reduced after the application of BACT; a binding commitment exists between the lessee and the owner or owners of the source or sources; the appropriate air quality control jurisdiction has been notified of the need to revise the State Implementation Plan to include the information regarding the offsets; and the required offsets come from sources which affect the air quality of the area significantly affected by the lessee's offshore operations.
(j) Review of facilities with emissions below the exemption amount. If, during the review of a new, modified, or revised Exploration Plan or Development and Production Plan, the Regional Supervisor determines or an affected State submits information to the Regional Supervisor which demonstrates, in the judgment of the Regional Supervisor, that projected emissions from an otherwise exempt facility will, either individually or in combination with other facilities in the area, significantly affect the air quality of an onshore area, then the Regional Supervisor shall require the lessee to submit additional information to determine whether emission control measures are necessary. The lessee shall be given the opportunity to present information to the Regional Supervisor which demonstrates that the exempt facility is not significantly affecting the air quality of an onshore area of the State.
(k) Emission monitoring requirements. The lessee shall monitor, in a manner approved or prescribed by the Regional Supervisor, emissions from the facility. The lessee shall submit this information monthly in a manner and form approved or prescribed by the Regional Supervisor.
(l) Collection of meteorological data. The Regional Supervisor may require the lessee to collect, for a period of time and in a manner approved or prescribed by the Regional Supervisor, and submit meteorological data from a facility.
[53 FR 10690, Apr. 1, 1988; 53 FR 19856, May 31, 1988; 53 FR 26067, July 11, 1988. Redesignated and amended at 63 FR 29479, 29485, May 29, 1998; 70 FR 51518, Aug. 30, 2005] § 250.304 Existing facilities.
(a) Process leading to review of an existing facility. (1) An affected State may request that the Regional Supervisor supply basic emission data from existing facilities when such data are needed for the updating of the State's emission inventory. In submitting the request, the State must demonstrate that similar offshore and onshore facilities in areas under the State's jurisdiction are also included in the emission inventory.
(2) The Regional Supervisor may require lessees of existing facilities to submit basic emission data to a State submitting a request under paragraph (a)(1) of this section.
(3) The State submitting a request under paragraph (a)(1) of this section may submit information from its emission inventory which indicates that emissions from existing facilities may be significantly affecting the air quality of the onshore area of the State. The lessee shall be given the opportunity to present information to the Regional Supervisor which demonstrates that the facility is not significantly affecting the air quality of the State.
(4) The Regional Supervisor shall evaluate the information submitted under paragraph (a)(3) of this section and shall determine, based on the basic emission data, available meteorological data, and the distance of the facility or facilities from the onshore area, whether any existing facility has the potential to significantly affect the air quality of the onshore area of the State.
(5) If the Regional Supervisor determines that no existing facility has the potential to significantly affect the air quality of the onshore area of the State submitting information under paragraph (a)(3) of this section, the Regional Supervisor shall notify the State of and explain the reasons for this finding.
(6) If the Regional Supervisor determines that an existing facility has the potential to significantly affect the air quality of an onshore area of the State submitting information under paragraph (a)(3) of this section, the Regional Supervisor shall require the lessee to refer to the information requirements under §250.218 or 250.249 of this part and submit only that information required to make the necessary findings under paragraphs (b) through (e) of this section. The lessee shall submit this information within 120 days of the Regional Supervisor's determination or within a longer period of time at the discretion of the Regional Supervisor. The lessee shall comply with the requirements of this section as necessary.
(b) Exemption formulas. To determine whether an existing facility is exempt from further air quality review, the lessee shall use the highest annual total amount of emissions from the facility for each air pollutant calculated in §250.218(a) or 250.249(a) of this part and compare these emissions to the emission exemption amount “E” for each air pollutant calculated using the following formulas: E=3400D2/3 for CO; and E=33.3D for TSP, SO2, NOX, and VOC (where E is the emission exemption amount expressed in tons per year, and D is the distance of the facility from the closest onshore area of the State expressed in statute miles). If the amount of projected emissions is less than or equal to the emission exemption amount “E” for the air pollutant, the facility is exempt for that air pollutant from further air quality review required under paragraphs (c) through (e) of this section.
(c) Significance levels. For a facility not exempt under paragraph (b) of this section for air pollutants other than VOC, the lessee shall use an approved air quality model to determine whether projected emissions of those air pollutants from the facility result in an onshore ambient air concentration above the following significance levels:
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Significance Levels: Air Pollutant Concentrations (µG/M\3\)------------------------------------------------------------------------ Averaging time (hours) Air pollutant ----------------------------- Annual 24 8 3 1------------------------------------------------------------------------SO2....................................... 1 5 ... 25 ......TSP....................................... 1 5 ... .. ......NO2....................................... 1 .. ... .. ......CO........................................ ....... .. 500 .. 2,000------------------------------------------------------------------------
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(d) Significance determinations. (1) The projected emissions of any air pollutant other than VOC from any facility which result in an onshore ambient air concentration above the significance levels determined under paragraph (c) of this section for that air pollutant shall be deemed to significantly affect the air quality of the onshore area for that air pollutant.
(2) The projected emissions of VOC from any facility which is not exempt under paragraph (b) of this section for that air pollutant shall be deemed to significantly affect the air quality of the onshore area for VOC.
(e) Controls required. (1) The projected emissions of any air pollutant which significantly affect the air quality of an onshore area shall be reduced through the application of BACT.
(2) The lessee shall submit a compliance schedule for the application of BACT. If it is necessary to cease operations to allow for the installation of emission controls, the lessee may apply for a suspension of operations under the provisions of §250.174 of this part.
(f) Review of facilities with emissions below the exemption amount. If, during the review of the information required under paragraph (a)(6) of this section, the Regional Supervisor determines or an affected State submits information to the Regional Supervisor which demonstrates, in the judgment of the Regional Supervisor, that projected emissions from an otherwise exempt facility will, either individually or in combination with other facilities in the area, significantly affect the air quality of an onshore area, then the Regional Supervisor shall require the lessee to submit additional information to determine whether control measures are necessary. The lessee shall be given the opportunity to present information to the Regional Supervisor which demonstrates that the exempt facility is not significantly affecting the air quality of an onshore area of the State.
(g) Emission monitoring requirements. The lessee shall monitor, in a manner approved or prescribed by the Regional Supervisor, emissions from the facility following the installation of emission controls. The lessee shall submit this information monthly in a manner and form approved or prescribed by the Regional Supervisor.
(h) Collection of meteorological data. The Regional Supervisor may require the lessee to collect, for a period of time and in a manner approved or prescribed by the Regional Supervisor, and submit meteorological data from a facility.
[53 FR 10690, Apr. 1, 1988; 53 FR 26067, July 11, 1988. Redesignated and amended at 63 FR 29479, 29485, May 29, 1998; 64 FR 72794, Dec. 28, 1999; 70 FR 51519, Aug. 30, 2005]
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