Title 62.1, Title 62.1. Waters of the State, Ports and Harbors

As used in this article unless the context requires a different meaning: "Clean Water Act" means the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended, (33 U.S.C. § 1251 et seq.). "Fully supporting" means those waters meeting the fishable and swimmable goals of the Clean Water Act.…

A. The Board shall develop the reports required by § 1313(d) (hereafter the 303(d) report) and § 1315(b) (hereafter the 305(b) report) of the Clean Water Act in a manner such that the reports will: (i) provide an accurate and comprehensive assessment of the quality of state surfa…

A. The Board, based on the information in the 303(d) and 305(b) reports, shall: 1. Request the Department of Wildlife Resources or the Virginia Marine Resources Commission to post notices at public access points to all toxic impaired waters. The notice shall be prepared by the Bo…

A. The Board shall develop and implement a plan to achieve fully supporting status for impaired waters, except when the impairment is established as naturally occurring. The plan shall include the date of expected achievement of water quality objectives, measurable goals, the cor…

Owners of establishments that discharge toxics to toxic-impaired waters shall evaluate the options described in §§ 10.1-1425.10 and 10.1-1425.11 in determining the appropriate means to control such discharges. Prior to issuing or reissuing any permit for the discharge of toxics t…

The Virginia Department of Health and the Department of Environmental Quality shall cooperate, in accordance with a memorandum of agreement to be signed by the Commissioner of Health and the Director of the Department of Environmental Quality, to ensure the timely transmission an…

Any duly authorized agent of the Board may, at reasonable times and under reasonable circumstances, enter any establishment or upon any property, public or private, for the purpose of obtaining information or conducting surveys or investigations necessary in the enforcement of th…

The Board may require every owner to furnish when requested such plans, specifications, and other pertinent information as may be necessary to determine the effect of the wastes from his discharge on the quality of state waters, or such other information as may be necessary to ac…

The fact that any owner holds or has held a certificate or land-disturbance approval issued under this chapter shall not constitute a defense in any civil action involving private rights. Compliance with the provisions of this chapter shall be prima facie evidence in any legal or…

Any person violating or failing, neglecting or refusing to obey any rule, regulation, order, water quality standard, pretreatment standard, approved standard and specification, or requirement of or any provision of any certificate or land-disturbance approval issued by the Board,…

The Board, in representing the public's interest, shall have the authority and standing to intervene as an interested party in any civil action, including actions both within and without the Commonwealth, pertaining to the withdrawal of any of the surface waters of the Commonweal…

(1) The validity of any regulation may be determined through judicial review in accordance with the provisions of the Administrative Process Act (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.). (2) [Repealed.] (3) An appeal may be taken from the decision of the court to the Court of Appeals as provided by …

Any owner under Article 2.3 (§ 62.1-44.15:24 et seq.), Article 2.5 (§ 62.1-44.15:67 et seq.), or § 62.1-44.16, 62.1-44.17, or 62.1-44.19 aggrieved by any action of the Board taken without a formal hearing, or by inaction of the Board, may demand in writing a formal hearing of suc…

A. The formal hearings held by the Board under this chapter shall be conducted pursuant to § 2.2-4009 or 2.2-4020 and may be conducted by the Board itself at a regular or special meeting of the Board, or by at least one member of the Board designated by the chairman to conduct su…

In all hearings under this chapter: (1) All relevant and material evidence shall be received, except that (a) the rules relating to privileged communications and privileged topics shall be observed; (b) hearsay evidence shall be received only if the declarant is not readily avail…

To be valid and operative, the decision by the Board rendered pursuant to hearings under subdivisions (8a), (8b), and (8c) of §§ 62.1-44.15 and 62.1-44.25 must be reduced to writing and contain the explicit findings of fact and conclusions of law upon which the decision of the Bo…

Any owner aggrieved by or any person who has participated, in person or by submittal of written comments, in the public comment process related to a final decision of the Board under subdivision (5), (8a), (8b), (8c), or (19) of § 62.1-44.15 or § 62.1-44.15:20, 62.1-44.15:21, 62.…

From the final decision of the circuit court an appeal may be taken to the Court of Appeals as provided in § 17.1-405.

It shall be unlawful for any owner to fail to comply with any order adopted by the Board, which has become final under the provisions of this chapter, or to fail to comply with a pretreatment condition incorporated into the permit issued to it by the owner of a publicly owned tre…

(a) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, any person who violates any provision of this chapter, or who fails, neglects, or refuses to comply with any regulation, certificate, land-disturbance approval, or order of the Board, or order of a court, issued as herein provided…

A. The State Water Control Board is empowered and directed to adopt all necessary regulations for the purpose of controlling the discharge of sewage and other wastes from both documented and undocumented boats and vessels on all navigable and nonnavigable waters within this Commo…

The following terms as used in this article shall have the meanings ascribed to them: "Aboveground storage tanks" means any one or combination of tanks, including pipes used to contain an accumulation of oil at atmospheric pressure, and the volume of which, including the volume o…

The Board is responsible for carrying out the provisions of this article and compatible provisions of federal acts and is authorized to: 1. Enforce the interim prohibition provisions in § 9003 (g) of United States Public Law 98-616. Until state underground storage tank standards …

The following terms as used in this article shall have the meanings ascribed to them: "Aboveground storage tanks" means any one or combination of tanks, including pipes used to contain an accumulation of oil at atmospheric pressure, and the volume of which, including the volume o…

A. The Virginia Petroleum Storage Tank Fund is hereby established as a nonlapsing revolving fund to be used by the Board for (i) administering the state regulatory programs authorized by Articles 9, 10 and 11 (§ 62.1-44.34:8 et seq.) of this chapter, (ii) demonstrating financial …

A. The Board shall adopt regulations that conform to the federal financial responsibility requirements of 42 U.S.C. § 6991b (d) and any regulations adopted thereunder. Owners and operators of underground storage tanks shall annually demonstrate and maintain evidence of financial …

A. In order to generate revenue for the Fund and to make the Fund available to owners and operators of underground storage tanks and to owners and operators of aboveground storage tanks, there shall be imposed a fee of one-fifth of one cent on each gallon of the following fuels s…

As used in this article unless the context requires a different meaning: "Aboveground storage tank" means any one or combination of tanks, including pipes, used to contain an accumulation of oil at atmospheric pressure, and the volume of which, including the volume of the pipes, …

A. No operator shall cause or permit the operation of a facility in the Commonwealth unless an oil discharge contingency plan applicable to the facility has been filed with and approved by the Board. No operator shall cause or permit a tank vessel to transport or transfer oil in …

The Board shall adopt regulations and develop procedures necessary to prevent pollution of state waters, lands, or storm drain systems from the discharge of oil from new and existing aboveground storage tanks. These regulations shall be developed in substantial conformity with th…

A. The operator of any tank vessel entering upon state waters shall have a Certificate of Financial Responsibility approved by the U.S. Coast Guard pursuant to § 4202 of the federal Oil Pollution Act of 1990 or shall deposit with the Board cash or its equivalent in the amount of …

A. Sections 62.1-44.34:15 and 62.1-44.34:16 do not apply to a facility having a maximum storage or handling capacity of less than 25,000 gallons of oil or to a tank vessel having a maximum storage, handling or transporting capacity of less than 15,000 gallons of oil or to a tank …

A. The discharge of oil into or upon state waters, lands, or storm drain systems within the Commonwealth is prohibited. For purposes of this section, discharges of oil into or upon state waters include discharges of oil that (i) violate applicable water quality standards or a per…

A. Any person discharging or causing or permitting a discharge of oil into or upon state waters, lands, or storm drain systems within the Commonwealth or discharging or causing or permitting a discharge of oil which may reasonably be expected to enter state waters, lands, or stor…

A. The Board shall compile an inventory of facilities with an aboveground storage capacity of more than 1320 gallons of oil or individual aboveground storage tanks having a storage capacity of more than 660 gallons of oil within the Commonwealth. To develop such an inventory, the…

A. All records relating to compliance with the requirements of this article shall be maintained by the operator of a facility at the facility or at an alternate location approved by the Board for a period of at least five years. Such records shall be available for inspection and …

A. Upon a finding of a violation of this article or a regulation or term or condition of approval issued pursuant to this article, the Board is authorized to issue a special order requiring any person to cease and desist from causing or permitting such violation or requiring any …

A. The Board is authorized to collect from any applicant for approval of an oil discharge contingency plan and from any operator seeking acceptance of evidence of financial responsibility fees sufficient to meet, but not exceed, the costs of the Board related to implementation of…

The Administrative Process Act (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.) shall govern the activities and the proceedings of the Board under this article.

A. Nothing in this article shall apply to: (i) normal discharges from properly functioning vehicles and equipment, marine engines, outboard motors or hydroelectric facilities; (ii) accidental discharges from farm vehicles or noncommercial vehicles; (iii) accidental discharges fro…

As used in this article, unless the context requires otherwise: "Council" means the Virginia Spill Response Council. "Discharge" means spillage, leakage, pumping, pouring, seepage, emitting, dumping, emptying, injecting, escaping, leaching, fire, explosion, or other releases. "Ha…

A. There is hereby created the Virginia Spill Response Council. The purpose of the Council is to (i) improve the Commonwealth's capability to respond in a timely and coordinated fashion to incidents involving the discharge of oil or hazardous materials which pose a threat to the …

The Council shall have the following responsibilities: 1. To foster the exchange of information between the federal, state, and local government; 2. To enhance Virginia's participation in the United States Environmental Protection Agency's Region III Response Team; 3. To review a…

Technical support shall be made available to the Council by the appropriate state agencies and educational institutions.

The Council shall submit a report annually to the Secretaries of Natural and Historic Resources and Transportation and Public Safety, which includes (i) an evaluation of the emergency response preparedness activities undertaken and the emergency response activities conducted duri…

As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Committee" means the PFAS Expert Advisory Committee established in § 62.1-44.34:33. "EPA" means the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. "HFPO-DA" means hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid. "PFAS" means …