Texas Water Code 26.039 – Accidental Discharges and Spills
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(a) As used in this section:
(1) “Accidental discharge” means an act or omission through which waste or other substances are inadvertently discharged into water in the state.
(2) “Spill” means an act or omission through which waste or other substances are deposited where, unless controlled or removed, they will drain, seep, run, or otherwise enter water in the state.
(3) “Other substances” means substances which may be useful or valuable and therefore are not ordinarily considered to be waste, but which will cause pollution if discharged into water in the state.
(b) Except as provided by Subsection (g), whenever an accidental discharge or spill occurs at or from any activity or facility which causes or may cause pollution, the individual operating, in charge of, or responsible for the activity or facility shall notify the commission as soon as possible and not later than 24 hours after the occurrence. The individual’s notice to the commission must include the location, volume, and content of the discharge or spill.
Terms Used In Texas Water Code 26.039
- Commission: means the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission. See Texas Water Code 26.001
- Local government: means an incorporated city, a county, a river authority, or a water district or authority acting under Article III, § 52, or Article XVI, § 59 of the Texas Constitution. See Texas Water Code 26.001
- Month: means a calendar month. See Texas Government Code 312.011
- Person: means an individual, association, partnership, corporation, municipality, state or federal agency, or an agent or employee thereof. See Texas Water Code 26.001
- Pollution: means the alteration of the physical, thermal, chemical, or biological quality of, or the contamination of, any water in the state that renders the water harmful, detrimental, or injurious to humans, animal life, vegetation, or property or to public health, safety, or welfare, or impairs the usefulness or the public enjoyment of the water for any lawful or reasonable purpose. See Texas Water Code 26.001
- Rule: includes regulation. See Texas Government Code 311.005
- water in the state: means groundwater, percolating or otherwise, lakes, bays, ponds, impounding reservoirs, springs, rivers, streams, creeks, estuaries, wetlands, marshes, inlets, canals, the Gulf of Mexico, inside the territorial limits of the state, and all other bodies of surface water, natural or artificial, inland or coastal, fresh or salt, navigable or nonnavigable, and including the beds and banks of all watercourses and bodies of surface water, that are wholly or partially inside or bordering the state or inside the jurisdiction of the state. See Texas Water Code 26.001
(c) Activities which are inherently or potentially capable of causing or resulting in the spillage or accidental discharge of waste or other substances and which pose serious or significant threats of pollution are subject to reasonable rules establishing safety and preventive measures which the commission may adopt or issue. The safety and preventive measures which may be required shall be commensurate with the potential harm which could result from the escape of the waste or other substances.
(d) The provisions of this section are cumulative of the other provisions in this chapter relating to waste discharges, and nothing in this section exempts any person from complying with or being subject to any other provision of this chapter.
(e) Except as provided by Subsection (g), if an accidental discharge or spill described by Subsection (b) from a wastewater treatment or collection facility owned or operated by a local government may adversely affect a public or private source of drinking water, the individual shall also notify appropriate local government officials and local media.
(f) The commission by rule shall specify the conditions under which an individual must comply with Subsection (e) and prescribe procedures for giving the required notice. The rules must also state the content of the notice and the manner of giving notice. In formulating the rules, the commission shall consider:
(1) the nature and extent of the discharge or spill;
(2) the potential effect of the discharge or spill; and
(3) regional information about the susceptibility of a particular drinking water source to a specific type of pollution.
(g) The individual is not required to notify the commission of an accidental discharge or spill of treated or untreated domestic wastewater under Subsection (b) or officials or media under Subsection (e) of a single accidental discharge or spill that:
(1) occurs at a wastewater treatment or collection facility owned or operated by a local government;
(2) has a volume of 1,000 gallons or less;
(3) is not associated with another simultaneous accidental discharge or spill;
(4) is controlled or removed before the accidental discharge or spill:
(A) enters water in the state; or
(B) adversely affects a public or private source of drinking water;
(5) will not endanger human health or safety or the environment; and
(6) is not otherwise subject to local regulatory control and reporting requirements.
(h) The commission by rule shall establish standard methods for calculating the volume of an accidental discharge or spill to be used for the purposes of this section.
(i) The individual shall calculate the volume of an accidental discharge or spill using an established standard method to determine whether the discharge or spill is exempted under Subsection (g) from the notification requirements of this section.
(j) The individual shall submit to the commission at least once each month a summary of accidental discharges and spills described by Subsection (g) that occurred during the preceding month. The commission by rule shall:
(1) consider the compliance history of the individual; and
(2) establish procedures for formatting and submitting a summary, including requirements that a summary include the location, volume, and content of each accidental discharge or spill.