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Spills at the oil and gas industry create an environmental wreck, posing substantial jeopardy to the on-site team members while corrupting the immediate environment. This sort of spillage also has the potential plausibility to produce long-lasting health concerns in the encompassing regions. Consequently, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has stringent mandates concerning secondary containment for the oil and gas industry.
The necessity for secondary containment for the oil and gas industry is indispensable. One of the most efficient ways to conveniently attain secondary containment is by making use of containment berms. A thorough understanding of SPCC (Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure) is imperative for avoiding accidental oil spills. Hence, formulating and designing an SPCC plan is a must across all such industries.
5 diverse applications of secondary containment for the oil and gas industry. Image Source: basicconcepts.com
EPA’s strict regulations regarding the usage of secondary containment are to keep a check on oil spills that contaminate a nation’s traversable waterways. This is established under the Clean Water Act and Oil Pollution Act as- any waterway or waterbody used for foreign and interstate commerce and encompasses rivers, wetlands, lakes, streams, wet meadows, and natural ponds and others. This specification incorporates almost all-natural surface water in the US. Also, do note that petroleum, sludge, oil refuse, fuel oil, and oil are infused with synthetic oils, vegetable oils, non-petroleum oils, animal fats, and greases, and wastes come under oil.
Once the oil is spilled, it imposes a grave menace to the surrounding environment- the land, water bodies such as freshwater and groundwater, marine habitats, human and animal life. Hence, a qualitative and well-customized secondary containment solution is inevitable to prevent a catastrophe. In today’s article, we discuss the various applications of secondary containment.
5 Diverse Applications of Secondary Containments for Oil & Gas Industry
Secondary containment oil spill berms render an added layer of protection over delicate equipment on on-site jobs while extending an efficient way of stopping accidental spills from occurring or spreading. Spill berms are resilient, lightweight, yet robust in design that can be effortlessly relocated and positioned as per the needs and requirements. They come in a wide assortment of diverse materials, offering protection against numerous kinds of chemicals, and are also easily adjustable. Due to there wide range of concrete attributes, secondary containment berms are extensively employed in varying situations in oil and gas sites. Given below lists out some of the standard applications of secondary containment solution:
- Bulk Storage at Convenience: Large vessels are kept in the job site for permanent storage and require secondary containment solutions in accordance with EPA guidance. Spill berms are essentially used to offer an added layer of protection and security from oil spills, from these bulk storage vessels.
- Maintenance Regions for Safety: When equipment, drills, or machinery are at times transferred to a specific area of a job site when they require maintenance. These spill berms are used in such maintenance areas to stop residual oil or any other chemicals from mixing or seeping into the soil.
- Portable Tanks with Hassle-free Conveyance: Portable tanks are frequently utilized at oil and gas sites to transport the oil or bring in fracking water. Furthermore, they also help to get rid of chemicals while safely transporting the wastewater. When these tanks are parked on-site for loading or unloading, the risk of accidental spills or leaks is high. Therefore, oil spill berms are primarily placed over the area where portable tanks are habitually parked as an additional containment precaution.
- Drilling and Fracking Sites for Protection: Spill berms are situated around drills and fracking wells to catch any additional spillage or leaks from the device. With drills, you may have excess oil leaks caused due to a leaky seal or cracked pipe. Meanwhile, with fracking, the flow back of the chemical-treated water utilized may leak, or there may be oil spills from the extraction process. Hence, secondary containment berms are employed as a way of protection against these inconvenient contingencies.
- Heavy Equipment to Prevent Leaks & Spillage: Heavy equipment is principally used to manage the drills or the pumps in the water at fracking sites and on oil rigs. This equipment can cause accidental malfunction or leak, creating massive contamination in the process. Hence, it’s good to place such equipment on top of spill containment berms to ensure that accidental leaks or spills are promptly and efficiently contained at the root.
