Virginia Administrative Code › Title 4 - CONSERVATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES › Agency 50 - VIRGINIA SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION BOARD › Chapter 20 - IMPOUNDING STRUCTURE REGULATIONS › Part III - Certificate Requirements › Section 4VAC50-20-175 - Emergency Action Plan (EAP) for High and Significant Hazard Potential impounding structures

Current through Register Vol. 40, No. 24, July 15, 2024
A. In order
				  to protect life during potential emergency conditions at an impounding
				  structure, and to ensure effective, timely action is taken should an impounding
				  structure emergency occur, an EAP shall be required for each High and
				  Significant Hazard Potential impounding structure. The EAP shall be coordinated
				  with the Department of Emergency Management in accordance with § 44-146.18
				  of the Code of Virginia. The EAP required by these regulations shall be
				  incorporated into local and interjurisdictional emergency plans pursuant to
				  § 44-146.19 of the Code of Virginia.
B. It is the impounding structure owner's
				  responsibility to develop, maintain, exercise, and implement a site-specific
				  EAP.
C. An EAP shall be submitted
				  every six years. The EAP shall be submitted with the owner's submittal of their
				  Regular Operation and Maintenance Certificate application (Operation and
				  Maintenance Certificate Application for Virginia Regulated Impounding
				  Structures).
D. The owner shall
				  update and resubmit the EAP immediately upon becoming aware of necessary
				  changes to keep the EAP workable. Should an impounding structure be
				  reclassified, an EAP in accordance with this section shall be
				  submitted.
E. A drill shall be
				  conducted annually for each high or significant hazard impounding structure. To
				  the extent practicable, the drill should include a face-to-face meeting with
				  the local emergency management agencies responsible for any necessary
				  evacuations to review the EAP and ensure the local emergency management
				  agencies understand the actions required during an emergency. Except as set out
				  in 4VAC50-20-53, a table-top exercise
				  shall be conducted once every six years, although more frequent table-top
				  exercises are encouraged. Drills and table-top exercises for multiple
				  impounding structures may be performed in combination if the involved parties
				  are the same. Owners shall certify to the department annually that a drill, a
				  table-top exercise, or both has been completed and provide any revisions or
				  updates to the EAP or a statement that no revisions or updates are
				  needed.
F. Impounding structure
				  owners shall test existing monitoring, sensing, and warning equipment at remote
				  or unattended impounding structures at least twice per year or as performed by
				  the Virginia Department of Emergency Management pursuant to § 10.1-609.1
				  of the Code of Virginia and maintain a record of such tests.
G. An EAP shall contain the following seven
				  basic elements unless otherwise specified in this subsection.
1. Notification chart. A notification chart
				  shall be included for all classes of impounding structures that shows who is to
				  be notified, by whom, and in what priority. The notification chart shall
				  include contact information providing 24-hour telephone coverage for all
				  responsible parties including, but not limited to, the impounding structure
				  operator or manager, state and local emergency management officials, local
				  police or sheriffs' departments, and the owner's engineer. The notification
				  chart shall also identify the process by which downstream property owners will
				  be notified, and what party or parties will be responsible for making such
				  notifications.
2. Emergency
				  Detection, Evaluation, and Classification. The EAP shall include a discussion
				  of the procedures for timely and reliable detection, evaluation, and
				  classification of emergency situations considered to be relevant to the project
				  setting and impounding features. Each relevant emergency situation is to be
				  documented to provide an appropriate course of action based on the urgency of
				  the situation. Where appropriate, situations should address impounding
				  structure failures that are imminent or in progress, a situation where the
				  potential for impounding structure failure is rapidly developing, and a
				  situation where the threat is slowly developing.
3. Responsibilities. The EAP shall specify
				  responsibilities for EAP-related tasks. The EAP shall also clearly designate
				  the responsible party for making the decision that an emergency condition no
				  longer exists at the impounding structure. The EAP shall include procedures and
				  the responsible parties for notifying to the extent possible any known local
				  occupants, owners, or lessees of downstream properties potentially impacted by
				  the impounding structure's failure.
4. Preparedness. The EAP shall include a
				  section that describes preparedness actions to be taken both before and
				  following development of emergency conditions.
5. Dam Break Inundation Maps. The EAP shall
				  include dam break inundation maps developed in accordance with
				  4VAC50-20-54.
6. Appendices. The appendices shall contain
				  information that supports and supplements the material used in the development
				  and maintenance of the EAP such as analyses of impounding structure failure
				  floods; plans for training, exercising, updating, and posting the EAP; and
				  other site-specific concerns.
7.
				  Certification. The EAP shall include a section that identifies all parties with
				  assigned responsibilities in the EAP pursuant to subdivision 3 of this
				  subsection. This will include certification that the EAP has been received by
				  these parties. The preparer's name, title, and contact information shall be
				  printed in this section. The preparer's signature shall also be included in the
				  certification section. The local organization for emergency management shall
				  provide the owner and the department with any deficiencies they may
				  note.