Section
15-111 Findings
15-112 Scope
15-113 Definitions
15-114 Reporting requirements
15-115 Hazardous substances user fee schedule
15-116 Hazardous substances user fee exemptions
15-117 Administration and enforcement
15-118 Disposition of fees collected
15-119 Right to hearing/appeals
15-120 Late payment penalty
15-121—15-130 Reserved
It is hereby found and declared by Greenville County Council:
(1) The storage, handling and dispensing of hazardous substances in the County has the potential for creating a dangerous situation that may adversely affect the health, safety and general welfare of the citizens of the County;
(2) There is the need to utilize and take advantage of the existing data base concerning the location and use of hazardous substances in the County;
(3) It is important to identify those facilities that pose a significant risk to the community. This shall be accomplished by determining those facilities that under the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 (“SARA”), Title III, annually submit to the local fire services, the LEPC and the SERC, Tier II reports concerning hazardous chemicals which the facility stores.
(4) Information provided to the County through the implementation of this article will be used to protect County citizens and emergency response personnel from the detrimental effects of the explosion, fire, or release of hazardous substances.
(5) The implementation of a hazardous substances user fee will generate the funds necessary to provide a county-wide comprehensive response capability to the hazardous substances problem, and such fee is authorized by S.C. Code § 4-9-30(5), which section permits the County to establish uniform user fees.
(6) The implementation of a comprehensive hazardous substances response capability in the County necessitates the training of personnel and the purchase of specialized equipment to combat hazardous substances emergencies in the County.
(7) In the event of a hazardous substances emergency, it is necessary to be able to provide proper and effective planning and response which specifically addresses the particular hazardous substance or substances being released.
(Ord. 4295, § 1, passed 6-16-2009)
This article shall apply to all substances within the County that, if accidentally released, may pose a threat or be harmful to human health, safety, animals, crops, water systems or other elements of the environment. Substances so designated may include, but are not limited to, explosives, radioactive materials, etiologic agents, flammable and combustible liquids, solids and gases, poisons, oxidizing substances, and corrosive substances.
(Ord. 4295, § 2, passed 6-16-2009)
For the purposes of this article, the following definitions shall apply:
(A) Extremely hazardous substances (“EHS”) are those substances designated as such by the Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency as listed in Title 40, Part 355 of the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations.
(B) Facility means all buildings, equipment, and other fixed structures that are located on a single site, or on contiguous or adjacent sites, and which are owned or operated by 1 person or entity (or by any person or entity which controls, is controlled by, or under common control with, such person or entity). Facility includes manmade and natural structures in and from which chemicals are intentionally placed or removed, thus rendering such structures chemical depositories.
(C) Hazardous substances (“HS”) means any chemical substance in liquid, solid, or gas form that, if accidentally released, may pose a threat or risk or be harmful to human health, safety, animals, crops, water systems, or other elements of the environment. Substances so designated may include, but are not limited to, explosives, radioactive materials, etiologic agents, flammable and combustible liquids, solids and gases, poisons, oxidizing substances and corrosive substances.
(D) Local Emergency Planning Committee (“LEPC”): appointed by the State Emergency Response Commission (“SERC”).
(E) Office of Emergency Management (“OEM”) is a department of Greenville County Government charged with coordinating available resources to plan, prepare for, respond to and recover from, medium to large scale community emergencies. OEM receives copies of Tier II reports from companies in Greenville County which are required annually to file a Tier II report to the DCDHEC, Bureau of Air Quality. OEM also oversees and coordinates the activities of the Local Emergency Planning Committee.
(F) Tier II Report: Under SARA, Title III, within the State of South Carolina, any facility located in Greenville County which stores, at any time during the calendar year, 10,000 pounds or more of a hazardous substance, or threshold planning quantities (“TPQ”) or more of an extremely hazardous substance.
(Ord. 4295, § 3, passed 6-16-20-09)
Tier II Report: Any facility located in Greenville County which stores, as any time during the calendar year, 10,000 pounds or more of a hazardous substance, or threshold planning quantities (“TPQ”) or more of any extremely hazardous substance, must submit, by March 1 of the following year, a Tier II report to SCDHEC Bureau of Air Quality, the facility’s jurisdictional fire department, and the Greenville County LEPC c/o the Office of Emergency Management.
(Ord. 4295, § 4, passed 6-16-2009)
Any facility required to annually file a Tier II report with the SCDHEC Bureau of Air Quality, and by extension, the Greenville County LEPC, shall be covered by this article and must pay a hazardous substance user fee according to the following schedule. The listed fees are per chemical or substance reported in the Tier II report. The Tier II report must be submitted prior to March 1 of each year. A listing of facilities, mailing addresses, and applicable fees will be provided by the LEPC to the Greenville County Department of General Services, Financial Operations Division, by April 15th. The Financial Operations Division shall create Hazardous Substance User Fee Invoices. Hazardous Substance User Fee Invoices shall be mailed no later than June 1st.
$25 per Hazardous Substance
$50 per Extremely Hazardous Substance
The maximum total fee for any facility reporting under Tier II shall be $2,500.
(Ord. 4295, § 5, passed 6-16-2009)
Under EPCRA Section 311 the following chemicals are exempt from the reporting requirements and as such shall be excluded from this article:
(1) Any food, food additive, color additive, drug or cosmetic regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”).
(2) Any substance present as a solid in any manufactured item to the extent exposure to the substance does not occur under normal conditions of use.
(3) Any substance to the extent it is used for personal, family, and household purposes, or is present in the same form and concentration as a product packaged for distribution and use by the general public.
(4) Any substance to the extent it is used in a research laboratory or a hospital or other medical facility under the direct supervision of a technically qualified individual. Substances such as fuel oil, natural gas, etc. used for normal facility operations are not exempt. Exterior storage of TPQ or above are not exempt.
(5) Any substance to the extent it is used in routine agricultural operations or is a fertilizer held for sale by a retailer to the ultimate customer. Pesticides and Herbicides are not exempt for retailers. Agricultural hazardous substances that are being transported over a public highway to an agricultural location are not exempt.
(Ord. 4295, § 6, passed 6-16-2009)
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