Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB2097 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R7837 JAM-F
2	2	By: Zaffirini S.B. No. 2097
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the regulation by the Texas Commission on Environmental
8	8	Quality of the discharge of preproduction plastic from point and
9	9	nonpoint sources to ensure zero discharge or release of plastic
10	10	into water or onto land in the state and to ensure the prompt
11	11	cleanup of any discharged or released plastic.
12	12	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
13	13	SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 26, Water Code, is amended
14	14	by adding Section 26.0481 to read as follows:
15	15	Sec. 26.0481. REGULATION OF DISCHARGE OF PREPRODUCTION
16	16	PLASTIC. (a) In this section:
17	17	(1) "Facility" means a facility where preproduction
18	18	plastic is manufactured, handled, or transported.
19	19	(2) "Preproduction plastic" means plastic resin
20	20	pellets, flakes, fibers, and powders, and powdered coloring for
21	21	plastics.
22	22	(3) "Zero discharge or release" means zero
23	23	preproduction plastics discharged or released to a body of water or
24	24	to land outside the property line of a facility.
25	25	(b) The commission by rule shall adopt and implement a
26	26	program to:
27	27	(1) ensure zero discharge or release from point and
28	28	nonpoint sources at facilities; and
29	29	(2) require the prompt and environmentally
30	30	responsible containment and cleanup of discharged or released
31	31	preproduction plastic.
32	32	(c) Rules adopted under this section must require:
33	33	(1) a new facility to apply for an individual
34	34	stormwater permit;
35	35	(2) an existing facility with a multi-sector general
36	36	permit applying for permit renewal to apply for an individual
37	37	stormwater permit; and
38	38	(3) any permit issued or renewed under the Texas
39	39	Pollutant Discharge Elimination System program to prohibit the
40	40	discharge or release of preproduction plastic from the permitted
41	41	location.
42	42	(d) A permit issued or renewed for a facility under the
43	43	Texas Pollutant Discharge Elimination System program must:
44	44	(1) prohibit:
45	45	(A) any discharge of preproduction plastic by
46	46	stormwater or wastewater to a body of water outside the property
47	47	line of a facility; and
48	48	(B) any release of preproduction plastic to land
49	49	outside the property line of a facility; and
50	50	(2) require a permittee to promptly clean up any
51	51	plastic presumed to have been discharged or released from the
52	52	facility in a manner that cleans up the most plastic possible
53	53	without causing harm to the ecosystem or, if the facility contests
54	54	that the plastic was discharged or released from the facility,
55	55	immediately contain the plastic to prevent further spread of the
56	56	plastic.
57	57	(e) Any preproduction plastic matching the preproduction
58	58	plastic produced by the facility found outside the property line of
59	59	a facility is presumed to have been released or discharged by that
60	60	facility. A facility must be given an opportunity to prove that
61	61	preproduction plastic found outside the property line of the
62	62	facility did not originate from the facility, provided that the
63	63	facility complies with the requirements of Subsection (d)(2).
64	64	(f) Except as provided by Subsection (g), the program
65	65	adopted under this section must require a facility to adopt and
66	66	implement:
67	67	(1) monitoring and reporting practices for the
68	68	discharge of preproduction plastic from point and nonpoint sources
69	69	at the facility; and
70	70	(2) best management practices with respect to:
71	71	(A) the installation of preproduction plastic
72	72	containment systems at all storm drain discharge locations at a
73	73	facility that are down-gradient of an area where preproduction
74	74	plastic is handled at the facility;
75	75	(B) a written maintenance program and schedule to
76	76	ensure that all containment systems are functioning properly;
77	77	(C) measures to contain preproduction plastic
78	78	during storage, handling, or transfer of the plastic, including the
79	79	use of:
80	80	(i) sealed containers that will not rupture
81	81	under typical loading and unloading activities;
82	82	(ii) capture devices under all transfer
83	83	valves and devices used in loading, unloading, or otherwise
84	84	transferring preproduction plastic;
85	85	(iii) vacuums or vacuum-type systems for
86	86	the quick cleanup of fugitive preproduction plastic; and
87	87	(iv) a source control and inspection
88	88	program for all transportation of plastics off site;
89	89	(D) spill prevention and spill cleanup
90	90	procedures;
91	91	(E) updates in science and technology or advances
92	92	in detection and treatment technologies;
93	93	(F) an employee training program; and
94	94	(G) other good housekeeping measures as
95	95	determined by the commission.
96	96	(g) The commission may exempt a facility from the
97	97	requirements of Subsection (f) if the facility satisfies the
98	98	criteria for a no exposure certification under 40 C.F.R. Section
99	99	122.26. The commission shall:
100	100	(1) require a facility exempted under this subsection
101	101	to submit a no exposure certification to the commission not less
102	102	than once every five years; and
103	103	(2) include criteria for submitting a no exposure
104	104	certification in all permit applications related to authorized
105	105	discharges from a facility.
106	106	(h) Before approving an exemption under Subsection (g), the
107	107	commission must:
108	108	(1) conduct an on-site inspection to confirm that the
109	109	conditions at a facility requesting the exemption meet the criteria
110	110	for a no exposure certification; and
111	111	(2) inspect an off-site area at least 50 feet in all
112	112	directions of all stormwater and wastewater outfalls of the
113	113	facility for the presence of off-site preproduction plastic.
114	114	(i) The monitoring and reporting requirements under
115	115	Subsection (f)(1) must require a facility to:
116	116	(1) conduct monitoring:
117	117	(A) outside the property line of the facility and
118	118	in any receiving waters for wastewater or stormwater discharges of
119	119	preproduction plastic, including an area of at least 50 feet in all
120	120	directions from all release or discharge points;
121	121	(B) not less than once every month;
122	122	(C) within eight hours of each rainfall event at
123	123	the facility; and
124	124	(D) at other times and places when plastic is
125	125	most likely to be released or discharged;
126	126	(2) submit to the commission, not less than once every
127	127	quarter, a report of the regular monitoring results gathered by the
128	128	permittee or the permittee's agent under Subdivision (1); and
129	129	(3) submit to the commission, not less than two
130	130	working days after a violation of Subsection (d)(1), a report of the
131	131	violation, including:
132	132	(A) photographs and global positioning system
133	133	information of the location of all discharged or released plastic;
134	134	and
135	135	(B) an estimate of the amount and location of
136	136	plastic discharged or released based on a method that:
137	137	(i) counts the number of pellets in a short
138	138	period of time; and
139	139	(ii) estimates the geographic area over
140	140	which the pellets spread.
141	141	(j) A containment system required under Subsection
142	142	(f)(2)(A) must use a device or series of devices that:
143	143	(1) are properly designed and maintained to capture
144	144	preproduction plastic that floats or sinks in stormwater; and
145	145	(2) have a designed treatment capacity of not less
146	146	than the peak flow rate resulting from a 100-year, 24-hour storm and
147	147	taking into consideration any wash water that is regularly added by
148	148	the facility operator to the system.
149	149	(k) The commission may establish additional requirements
150	150	regarding the regulation of discharges and releases of
151	151	preproduction plastic from facilities into water or onto land in
152	152	the state.
153	153	SECTION 2. (a) Not later than January 1, 2022, the Texas
154	154	Commission on Environmental Quality shall adopt rules necessary to
155	155	implement Section 26.0481, Water Code, as added by this Act.
156	156	(b) Not later than January 1, 2023, a facility subject to
157	157	Section 26.0481, Water Code, as added by this Act, must be in
158	158	compliance with that section.
159	159	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.