OVERVIEW
The Unified Program (UP) is a consolidation of multiple environmental and emergency management programs and is overseen by the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA). The program protects Californians from hazardous waste and hazardous materials by ensuring local regulatory agencies consistently apply statewide standards when they issue permits, conduct inspections and engage in enforcement activities. Each government agency designated by the State of California as a Certified Unified Program Agency (CUPA) is authorized to apply statewide standards to regulated facilities within its jurisdiction. For more information on the Unified Program, please visit the CalEPA website.
UPDATES
Underground Storage Tank with Single-Walled Components
Effective September 25, 2014, Senate Bill (SB) 445 (Stats. 2014, Ch. 547) changed the underground storage tank (UST) regulatory program regarding design and construction of USTs. These changes are reflected in Health and Safety Code, chapter 6.7 (H&SC), section 25292.05. Specifically, this change requires that on or before December 31, 2025, the owner or operator must permanently close a UST if it was designed and constructed before January 1, 1984 and does not meet the requirements of H&SC, section 25291(a)(1)-(6) or if it was designed and constructed before January 1, 1997 in accordance with H&SC, section 25291(a)(7).
All regulated USTs that do not meet the requirements of H&SC, section 25291(a)(1)-(6), must be permanently closed on or before December 31, 2025 in accordance with H&SC, section 25298, and the California Code of Regulations, title 23, chapter 16 (UST Regulations), section 2672. A single-walled UST is either the tank and/or the connected piping which do not have secondary containment and a continuous leak detection system meeting the requirements of H&SC, section 25291(a)(1)-(6). UST Systems which do not have secondary containment and a continuous leak detection system that have not been permanently closed by the regulatory due date are out of compliance, cannot be operated, and will be red tagged by the Unified Program Agency (UPA) or the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board), preventing fuel deliveries and dispensing. Penalties for systems out of compliance are $500 to $5,000 per day per underground storage tank.
Assembly Bill 2059
Existing law declares that to protect public health and safety and the environment, it is necessary to establish and implement a Hazardous Materials Business Plan (HMBP) relating to the handling and release or threatened release of hazardous materials. Accordingly, the law excluded hazardous material contained solely in a consumer product, handled at, and found in a retail establishment, and intended for sale for public use.
Assembly Bill (AB) 2059 was approved on September 13, 2022. This act amends Chapter 6.95 Hazardous Materials Release Response Plans and Inventory Sections 25500, 25501, and 25507 of and adds Sections 25507.5 and 25508.3 to the Health and Safety Code relating to hazardous materials. In addition, AB 2059 would expand the scope of hazardous materials subject to regulation by narrowing the “consumer product” definition and the exemptions applicable to these products.
This bill would not exempt a facility from submitting an HMBP meeting either of the following:
- A consumer product handled at a facility that manufactures that product, or a separate warehouse or distribution center where there are no direct sales to consumers, or where a product is dispensed on the retail premises.
- A consumer product sold at a retail establishment that has a National Fire Protection Association or “NFPA” or Hazardous Materials Identification System or “HMIS” rating of 3 or 4 and is stored, at any time, in quantities equal to, or greater than, 165 gallons for a liquid, 600 cubic feet for a gas, and 1,500 pounds for a solid. If a unified program agency determines that a consumer product stored at a retail establishment is stored at or above a reportable threshold listed in subdivision (a), and poses a significant potential hazard, the unified program agency may require the product to be reported in accordance with this chapter.
Click the link below to view CalEPA’s update on AB 2059.
CalEPA Update on AB 2059
Assembly Bill 2059
Contact Information
LAFD CUPA
200 N Main Street, Room 1780
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Phone: (213) 978-3680
Email: lafdcupa@lacity.org
Hazardous Materials Business Plans are Required to be Submitted Annually by March 1st. Please Utilize the California Environmental Reporting System (CERS) to Submit Business Plans.