P.L. 1997, CHAPTER 430, approved January 19, 1998
Assembly, No. 2896 (First Reprint)
An Act concerning the regulation of underground storage tanks, and amending P.L.1986, c.102.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 1 of P.L.1991, c.123 (C.58:10A-24.1) is amended to read as follows:
1. [One year from the effective date of this act, no] a. Except as provided in subsection b. of this section, a person shall not perform, except in accordance with the provisions of this act, tank services on an underground storage tank at an underground storage tank site required for purposes of complying with the provisions of P.L.1986, c.102 (C.58:10A-21 et seq.), including, but not limited to, tank testing, tank installation, tank removal, tank repair, installation of monitoring systems, and subsurface evaluations for corrective action, closure, and corrosivity.
b. Subsection a. of this section shall not apply to 1[tank removal performed] a person performing tank closure1 on an underground storage tank located on a farm. 1A person performing tank closure on an underground storage tank located on a farm shall comply with the guidelines and the criteria established pursuant to subsection c. of this section.1 For the purposes of this section, "farm" shall mean land that qualifies for a special tax assessment pursuant to the "Farmland Assessment Act of 1964," P.L.1964, c.48 (C.54:4-23.1 et seq.), or any land less than five acres in area that would otherwise qualify for that farmland assessment and that has produced agricultural or horticultural products with a wholesale value of $10,000 or more annually for at least the two successive years immediately preceding the year in which the tank removal is performed.
1c. Within 90 days of the effective date of P.L. , c. (now before the Legislature as this bill), the department shall implement guidelines establishing a protocol for the performance of tank closures on a farm. Within 18 months of the effective date of P.L. , c. (now before the Legislature as this bill), the Department of Environmental Protection, in consultation with the Department of Agriculture and the State Soil Conservation Committee, shall, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), adopt criteria for the performance of tank closures on farms. Both the guidelines and the criteria shall be developed with the objectives of reducing the cost and increasing the efficiency of the process of tank closure while also ensuring environmental protection and public safety.1
(cf: P.L.1991, c.123, s.1)
2. Section 2 of P.L.1991, c.123 (C.58:10A-24.2) is amended to read as follows:
2. a. [No] A business firm shall not engage in the business of performing services on underground storage tanks at underground storage tank sites for purposes of complying with the requirements of P.L.1986, c.102 (C.58:10A-21 et seq.) unless the business firm has been certified in accordance with section 3 of [this act] P.L.1991, c.123 (C.58:10A-24.3), by certification of the owner, or, in the case of partnership, a partner in the firm, or, in the case of a corporation, an executive officer of the corporation.
b. [Any] Except as provided pursuant to subsection b. of section 1 of P.L.1991, c.123, any service performed on an underground storage tank at an underground storage tank site for the purpose of complying with the provisions of P.L.1986, c.102 (C.58:10A-21 et seq.), shall be performed by, or under the immediate on-site supervision of, a person certified by the department in accordance with section 3 of [this act] P.L.1991, c.123 (C.58:10A-24.3).
c. A business firm or other person performing well drilling or pump installation services at the site of an underground storage tank who is licensed to perform such services pursuant to section 7 of P.L.1947, c.377 (C.58:4A-11), shall not be required to be certified pursuant to section 3 of [this act] P.L.1991, c.123 (C.58:10A-24.3), or to perform those services under the supervision of a person certified thereunder.
d. Professional engineers licensed pursuant to P.L.1938, c.342 (C.45:8-27 et seq.) shall be exempt from the certification requirements of section 3 of [this act] P.L.1991, c.123 (C.58:10A-24.3) and from the payment of a recertification or renewal fee required pursuant to section 4 of [this] that act, but shall be required to obtain a certification card issued by the department at no charge and to make the card available for inspection by a State or local official when performing tank services on an underground storage tank at an underground storage tank site. Professional engineers exempt pursuant to this subsection shall be required to attend a department approved training course on the department's rules and regulations concerning underground storage tanks within one year of certification or recertification.
e. A plumbing contractor, as defined pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1968, c.362 (C.45:14C-2), engaged in the installation, repair, testing, or closure of a waste oil underground storage tank shall be exempt from the certification requirements of section 3 of [this act] P.L.1991, c.123 (C.58:10A-24.3) and from payment of a recertification or renewal fee required pursuant to section 4 of [this] that act, but shall be required to obtain a certification card issued by the department at no charge and to make the card available for inspection by a State or local official when performing tank services on an underground storage tank. Plumbing contractors exempt pursuant to this subsection shall be required to attend a department approved training course on the department's rules and regulations concerning underground storage tanks within one year of certification or recertification. A plumbing contractor engaged in the installation, repair, testing, or closure of an underground storage tank that is not a waste oil tank shall be required to comply with section 3 of [this act] P.L.1991, c.123 (C.58:10A-24.3).
(cf: P.L.1991, c.123, s.2)
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
Exempts certain farm underground storage tanks from certain regulatory requirements.