PHMSA PREP: Tabletop Exercises and Coronavirus
John K. Carroll III
Associate Managing Director at Witt O'Brien's, LLC, Part of the Ambipar Group
The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA90) is administered by four agencies: Untied States Coast Guard (USCG), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) and Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). Each of these agencies enforce and regulate their authorized part of industry. USCG, marine transfer operation, i.e., oil terminals with docks. EPA, land-based oil operations, i.e., refineries. BSEE, offshore oil and gas platforms and pipelines, i.e., oil platforms one can see from the Galveston shoreline. Lastly, there is PHMSA, which regulates inland oil pipelines. Each of these agencies, as part of OPA90, serve to accomplish the same primary goal: protect the environment from oil releases. However, as each agency focuses on a different part of industry, their respective rules are structured differently; they are geared towards their niche’s primary means of operating.
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Coronavirus Update – Due to current events, our workshop has been postponed to November 17th.
Witt O'Brien's will be hosting Troy Swackhammer, Mark Howard and Chris Perry, EPA Region SPCC Plan and Facility Response Plan (FRP) Coordinator in Houston for an all-day Free SPCC Plan and FRP workshop. Click here to RSVP.
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Today’s article won’t be a full dive into how to organize and facilitate a tabletop exercise or drill. Rather, it will offer insight into some information recently published by PHMSA as well as a high-level overview of what’s required.
Under the rule linked above, PHMSA simply states:
(ix) Drill program—an operator will satisfy the requirement for a drill program by following the National Preparedness for Response Exercise Program (PREP) guidelines. An operator choosing not to follow PREP guidelines must have a drill program that is equivalent to PREP. The operator must describe the drill program in the response plan and OPS will determine if the program is equivalent to PREP.
Quick note on the above if you’re new to this world. Nobody goes after an alternative, as PREP is preferred by the agencies and has overwhelmingly been adopted by industry.
Under PREP, operators are required to do the below as part of their drill and exercise program. PREP has other requirements such as quarterly Qualified Individual (QI) notification exercises, equipment deployment exercises, as well as unannounced exercises. Today we’ll just be focusing on plan holder-initiated exercises and drills.
An important note to the below, under 2.3.8, Plan Holder Triennial Exercise Cycle, of PREP, it states:
All components of a response plan must be exercised during the triennial exercise cycle.
Rather than requiring each plan holder to conduct an all-encompassing major exercise every three years, the PREP cycle is designed for the various individual components to be exercised in portions through a series of required exercises.
Translation to the above, you have three years to accomplish the below; however, all components must be accomplished during the triennial cycle.
Section 5.0 – DOT/PHMSA PREP Exercises | Page 5-3
The Coronavirus has thrown a wrench in many companies’ plans for drills and exercises. Moreover, it has restricted movement of personnel, shutdown parts of operations, and, in some cases resulted in loss of personnel. Subsequently, our firm has received numerous client inquiries on how they should handle their 2020 exercise and drill programs.
In May of 2020, PHMSA published two great videos to help industry prepare and develop exercises, found here.
On April 15, 2020 at the American Petroleum Institute’s (API) Spring Spill Advisory Group meeting Eddie Murphy with PHMSA noted the below during his presentation to address current concerns.
He also noted the below important note too due to PHMSA office closures.
As you can see, PHMSA understands the effects of the pandemic and they, like many agencies, are willing to work with industry. However, you should be engaged and communicate your current situation with PHMSA. As society has gotten better acquainted with managing the “new normal”, digital online platforms are becoming more widespread and accepted by people. As such, outside of a full fledge worst case drill/exercise, there are components from PREP that can be done, i.e., via a MS-Teams event.
Additional Reference Articles
- Did you know the National Preparedness for Response Exercise Program (PREP) Guidelines were updated?
- PHMSA OSRP Compliance and Takeaways
- Who regulates my MTR facility tank: PHMSA, EPA or USCG?
- PHMSA OSRP WCD volume, how does one calculate? – An OPA90 Discussion
- Fact vs. Myth – PHMSA OSRP Training Requirements – An OPA90 Discussion
- What is a PHMSA OSRP 5-Year Review?
For a complete listing of archived blogs and compliance insights, click here. Past blogs cover training requirements, clarification on additional confusing elements within the above rules, and much more.
We are here to help solve your compliance questions and challenges. Need some compliance assistance, or just have a question? Please email John K. Carroll III ([email protected]) Associate Managing Director – Compliance Services or call at +1 281-320-9796.
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