What is the purpose of the Oil Pollution Prevention regulation?

When oil spills into navigable waters or onto adjoining shorelines, it can have harmful impacts on the environment, human health, and economic activity.  EPA issued the Oil Pollution Prevention regulation to prevent oil spills and to assure that oil facility personnel are prepared to respond if a spill occurs.

The regulation has two sets of requirements.  The first set of requirements is the Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) rule.  The SPCC rule is the basis of EPA’s oil spill prevention program.  The second set of requirements is the Facility Response Plan (FRP) rule.  The FRP program is designed to ensure that certain facilities have adequate oil spill response capabilities.