PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release – October 23, 2024
Media Contact:
Anna Bourakovsky, Hazardous Materials Program Manager
Department of Environmental Conservation
802-477-2981, Anna.Bourakovsky@Vermont.gov
Vermont ANR Announces Revised Rules for Aboveground Storage Tanks:
Tanks in Flood Prone Areas Must Follow New Requirements
Montpelier, Vt. – The Vermont Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) has revised the State’s Aboveground Storage Tank (AST) Rules. The revised AST Rules took effect on August 1, 2024 and replace the 2017 AST Rules. These rules apply to ASTs that hold heating fuel at residential and business locations.
“These rules are in place to reduce the number of petroleum releases from ASTs across the state,” said DEC Commissioner Jason Batchelder. “The goal is to not only lessen impacts to human health and the environment, but to also limit liability for the cleanup of uninsured releases by the State’s Petroleum Cleanup Fund.”
The revised rules include several important changes, including:
- The requirement to secure tanks and extend vent pipes above flood levels in flood prone areas.
- New design and installation requirements for new AST systems.
- Additional standards for existing tanks to be implemented by 2030.
- A new “Yellow Tag” provision that allows noncompliant ASTs serving residences to be filled until the end of the heating season.
ANR estimates that there are 12,000 structures in Vermont that fall within a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) designated flood prone area; some of these structures store heating fuel in ASTs. The Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has developed guidance to help owners find out if their property is in a designated flood prone area.
Rules for tanks in flood prone areas are timely given the major flood events in recent years. When in floodwaters, unsecured ASTs become buoyant and may spill their contents. Indoor ASTs float in basements, while outdoor ASTs may be carried downstream. In 2023 and 2024, the DEC Spill Response Team received hundreds of calls about AST releases. AST releases were also common during Tropical Storm Irene in 2011.
For more information about the revised AST Rules and how to prevent AST releases, call the DEC Storage Tanks Section at 802-828-1138 or visit DEC’s AST webpage.
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The Department of Environmental Conservation is responsible for protecting Vermont's natural resources and safeguarding human health for the benefit of this and future generations. Visit dec.vermont.gov and follow the Department of Environmental Conservation on Facebook and Instagram.
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