WVDEP Invites Stakeholders to Working Meeting to Discuss Proposed AST Program Rule

 

The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection is inviting people who have identified themselves as stakeholders in the Aboveground Storage Tank rulemaking process to a working meeting on Oct. 1 at the Charleston Civic Center. The meeting begins at 9:30 a.m., will break at noon so participants can get lunch on their own, and will resume at 1:30 p.m. It is expected to last until at least 4:30 p.m.

The purpose is to gather input on ways to improve a rough draft of the rule so that the final product can fulfill its intended purpose of adequately and thoroughly regulating tanks and decrease their risk of causing harm to the public or the environment.

Participants are asked to RSVP by end of day on Sept. 26 by emailing WVDEPTankRules@wv.gov.

The agency will be taking comments on the rough draft of the emergency rule through Oct. 24 and then will use those comments, plus input received during the Oct. 1 meeting, to improve the rule. To view the rough draft, go to the DEP’s home page, www.dep.wv.gov, and click the Aboveground Storage Tank Act link on the bottom left-hand side to go to the agency’s AST page.

This AST page is also where tank owners need to go to register tanks by the Oct. 1 deadline, and it includes links to helpful information such as frequently asked questions, the legislation that requires the program to be implemented, guidelines for spill prevention response plans and tank certifications, an interpretive rule filed by the agency and a list of AST contacts who can answer questions about tank registration and program requirements.

Comments can be emailed, with “AST emergency rule comments” as the subject line, to WVDEPTankRules@wv.gov or mailed to:

West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection – Public Information Office
AST Emergency Rule Comments
601 57th Street SE
Charleston, WV 25304

Contact:

Kelley Gillenwater
304-926-0442
Kelley.J.Gillenwater@wv.gov