§264.195 Inspections.

(a) The owner or operator must develop and follow a schedule and procedure for inspecting overfill controls.

(b) The owner or operator must inspect at least once each operating day:

(1) Aboveground portions of the tank system, if any, to detect corrosion or releases of waste;

(2) Data gathered from monitoring and leak detection equipment (e.g., pressure or temperature gauges, monitoring wells) to ensure that the tank system is being operated according to its design; and

(3) The construction materials and the area immediately surrounding the externally accessible portion of the tank system, including the secondary containment system (e.g., dikes) to detect erosion or signs of releases of hazardous waste (e.g., wet spots, dead vegetation).

[Note: Section 264.15(c) requires the owner or operator to remedy any deterioration or malfunction he finds. Section 264.196 requires the owner or operator to notify the Regional Administrator within 24 hours of confirming a leak. Also, 40 CFR part 302 may require the owner or operator to notify the National Response Center of a release.]

(c) The owner or operator must inspect cathodic protection systems, if present, according to, at a minimum, the following schedule to ensure that they are functioning properly:

(1) The proper operation of the cathodic protection system must be confirmed within six months after initial installation and annually thereafter; and

(2) All sources of impressed current must be inspected and/or tested, as appropriate, at least bimonthly (i.e., every other month).

[Note: The practices described in the National Association of Corrosion Engineers (NACE) standard, "Recommended Practice (RP-02-85) -- Control of External Corrosion on Metallic Buried, Partially Buried, or Submerged Liquid Storage Systems," and the American Petroleum Institute (API) Publication 1632, "Cathodic Protection of Underground Petroleum Storage Tanks and Piping Systems," may be used, where applicable, as guidelines in maintaining and inspecting cathodic protection systems.]

(d) The owner or operator must document in the operating record of the facility an inspection of those items in paragraphs (a) through (c) of this section.