Question: Twice a year, a semi delivers our liquid base stock into two bulk storage tanks. We need to comply with stormwater regulations during these deliveries. Your Collapse-A-Tainers would be great, but they’re not in our budget — especially since we’d only use them twice a year. Do you have any other budget-friendly stormwater management options?
Answer: Fortunately, when you’re looking for ways to manage stormwater and comply with regulations, you aren’t bound to a pre-determined set of products or methods to be compliant. The Environmental Protection Agency gives you the latitude to determine what makes the most sense for your facility — as long as it is effective, of course.
Collapse-A-Tainers are a nice option because they provide instant secondary containment whenever and wherever you need it. But, as mentioned, they can be a sizable investment for an item that will only be used twice a year.
Drain covers may be a suitable option depending on how the area around the tanks is graded. If the area is paved and slopes toward a drain, drain covers can serve as a secondary containment device. By covering and sealing the drain, any spilled liquid will pool and then can be collected with a vacuum or absorbed.
If that isn’t an option, you could create a collapsible curbing system with Build-A-Berm Barriers. These berms can be quickly installed to create a secondary containment area with drive-over versatility.
Check with your bulk fluid supplier to see if their delivery trucks have multiple hulls and what the flow rate is for the product(s) being delivered. In some cases, having a sufficient amount of absorbents on hand could be adequate preparedness. For example, if each hull holds 500 gallons and the flow rate is only 10 or 20 gallons per minute, the spill potential is much lower than a tanker holding 10,000 gallons with a flow rate of 80 or 90 gallons per minute.
No matter what best management practices you choose to comply for stormwater regulations, be sure that everyone knows why they are onsite and how to use them properly. Even the most budget-friendly option is not a bargain if no one knows how to use it in an emergency.
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