A new USDA initiative may help agricultural producers in Idaho comply with revised Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations for on-farm oil spills.
The Natural Resources Conservation Service is accepting applications for the Spill, Prevention, Control and Countermeasure pilot initiative through May 20, 2011.
EPA’s revised Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure regulations require agricultural operations to have an oil spill prevention plan in place. The USDA set up a pilot initiative for eight states, including Idaho, to help producers comply with the EPA’s SPCC regulations.
“An important part of the USDA mission is helping farmers and ranchers develop plans to protect human health and the environment, including assistance to comply with new regulations,” said Jeff Burwell, Idaho NRCS State Conservationist. “This new pilot initiative will help agricultural producers meet a new regulatory requirement designed to reduce the dangers of on-farm oil spills.”
For farms with aboveground storage capacity of more than 10,000 gallons of oil or oil products, the EPA requires that the SPCC plans be developed by a professional engineer. The NRCS initiative offers a set payment for producers that use a certified Technical Service Provider to develop a SPCC conservation activity plan that meets the EPA’s requirements.
To learn more about the Spill, Prevention, Control and Countermeasure regulation and pilot initiative, contact the NRCS office in your area. Find the one nearest you at http://www.id.nrcs.usda.gov/ and click the link “Find a Service Center” at the end of the list on the left side.
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