SECTION 327.5. Actions Required

(a) The responsible person shall immediately abate and contain the spill or discharge and cooperate fully with the executive director and the local incident command system. The responsible person shall also begin reasonable response actions which may include, but are not limited to, the following actions:

(1) arrival of the responsible person or response personnel hired by the responsible person at the site of the discharge or spill;

(2) initiating efforts to stop the discharge or spill;

(3) minimizing the impact to the public health and the environment;

(4) neutralizing the effects of the incident;

(5) removing the discharged or spilled substances; and

(6) managing the wastes.

(b) Upon request of the local government responders or the executive director, the responsible person shall provide a verbal or written description, or both, of the planned response actions and all actions taken before the local governmental responders or the executive director arrive. When the agency on-scene coordinator requests this information, it is subject to possible additional response action requirements by the executive director. The information will serve as a basis for the executive director to determine the need for:

(1) further response actions by the responsible person;

(2) initiating state funded actions for which the responsible person may be held liable to the maximum extent allowed by law; and

(3) subsequent reports on the response actions.

(c) Except for discharges or spills occurring during the normal course of transportation about which carriers are required to file a written report with the U.S. Department of Transportation under 49 CFR §171.16, the responsible person shall submit written information, such as a letter, describing the details of the discharge or spill and supporting the adequacy of the response action, to the appropriate TNRCC regional manager within 30 working days of the discovery of the reportable discharge or spill. The regional manager has the discretion to extend the deadline. The documentation shall contain one of the following items:

(1) A statement that the discharge or spill response action has been completed and a description of how the response action was conducted. The statement shall include the initial report information required by §327.3(c) of this title (relating to Notification Requirements). The executive director may request additional information. Appropriate response actions at any time following the discharge or spill include use of the Texas Risk Reduction Program rules in Chapter 350 of this title (relating to Texas Risk Reduction Program).

(2) A request for an extension of time to complete the response action, along with the reasons for the request. The request shall also include a projected work schedule outlining the time required to complete the response action. The executive director may grant an extension up to six months from the date the spill or discharge was reported. Unless otherwise notified by the appropriate regional manager or the Emergency Response Team, the responsible person shall proceed according to the terms of the projected work schedule.

(3) A statement that the discharge or spill response action has not been completed nor is it expected to be completed within the maximum allowable six month extension. The statement shall explain why completion of the response action is not feasible and include a projected work schedule outlining the remaining tasks to complete the response action. This information will also serve as notification that the response actions to the discharge or spill will be conducted under the Texas Risk Reduction Program rules in Chapter 350 of this title (relating to Texas Risk Reduction Program).

Source Note: The provisions of this §327.5 adopted to be effective May 23, 1996, 21 TexReg 4228; amended to be effective December 26, 1996, 21 TexReg 12175; amended to be effective September 23, 1999, 24 TexReg 7415