What is a reportable spill in New Jersey? For say a gasoline release?

Answer 1

Under New Jersey environmental law ALL spills are reportable and there is no minimum reportable quantity for any listed combustible or flammable substance in liquid form. Combustible substances are defined as those with a flash point at or above 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and below 300 degrees F (e.g. diesel fuel). Flammable substances are those liquids with a flash point at or below 100 F (e.g. gasoline).
From page 15, Section 2.6:
http://admin.shu.edu/facilities/docs/SPCC_Procedures_REV%201.pdf


The reason that New Jersey does not need to have a minimum reportable quantity (in order to prevent you from having to report spilled drinks in the local bar) is that NJ has a minimum reportable threshold based on the quantity of the potentially hazardous substance that is kept on hand. For especially toxic substances this can be as little as a few pounds. For gasoline the quantity that must be reported (as a stored quantity) is any quantity above 1428 gallons (10,000 lbs).

Here is the NJ documentation:
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/opppc/crtk/crtkcompliance06.pdf
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/opppc/forms/rpprinstr06.PDF
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/opppc/figdoc.htm

As best I can tell, this RPRR (release and pollution prevention report) is where the spills must be reported:
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/opppc/forms/RPPR%20Form%2006%20Sample.PDF

The question I cannot answer from any of NJ's documents that I have read is if a company that does not meet the threshold inventory reporting requirement must still report a spill. It appears that possibly, only companies with the minimum reportable quantities on hand are required to report these small quantity spills. I would certainly call them to be sure.

Answer 2

January 4, 1990 excerpt from washington post.
More than 500,000 gallons of heating oil may have "leaked"
into the busy Arthur Kill shipping channel from a break in an Exxon pipeline, the Coast Guard said yesterday.

Coast Guard spokesman Jeff Crawley said Exxon issued the new estimate after taking an inventory. He said 420,000 to 546,000 gallons could have leaked.

The Coast Guard previously estimated that 5,000 gallons of the lightweight No. 2 oil had spilled into the channel, which separates Staten Island, N.Y., from New Jersey.
http://lifesci.rutgers.edu/~burger/oilspill.htm

http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-118794715.html a more recent story from 2004

Answer 3

Wow, I tried to look up the answer to your question at NJ's Department of Environmental Protection, but could find nothing about what is considered a 'reportable' amount. Try calling the hotline number and ask them. The number is on this page: http://www.nj.gov/dep/warndep.htm