Tank Compliance and Assistance Program

The Tank Compliance and Assistance Program provides information and assistance to tank owners and others regarding technical standards required of all regulated underground storage tank (UST) and aboveground storage tank (AST) systems. The program also evaluates compliance of tank facilities with state statutes, rules, and permits through inspection and investigations, and determines appropriate enforcement actions when violations are discovered.

This program regulates a variety of industries. Some of the most common regulated facilities with hazardous liquid storage include service stations, trucking companies, bulk petroleum dealers, pipeline terminals, refineries, utility companies, airports, bus companies, school districts, highway departments, and industries such as sugar beet, ethanol, pulp and paper, mining, and chemicals.

Aboveground Storage Tanks

Underground Storage Tanks

Tank notification

Owners of USTs with a capacity of 110 gallons or more and ASTs with a capacity of 500 gallons or more, which contain petroleum or hazardous substances used commercially, must notify the MPCA of the existence of these tanks.

Tanks not subject to notification include farm and residential motor fuel tanks with a capacity of less than 1,100 gallons not used commercially; heating oil tanks less than 1,100 gallons; flow-through process tanks; septic tanks and agricultural chemical tanks.

Tank owners must also notify the MPCA within 30 days after any product change or status change (tank closure, removal, new owner, etc.) at a registered tank facility.  

Notification requirements can be met by completing either the UST Notification form or AST Notification form, as applicable, and submitting the signed form to the MPCA. The notification requirements are found in Minnesota Statute, Ch. 116.48

• UST Notification of Installation or Change in Status (PDF Version) (t-u5-04)
• AST Notification Form (PDF Version) (t-a1-20)

Ten Day Advance Notice.  The tank owner or the installation contractor must provide advance notice to the MPCA of certain activities related to underground storage tanks: Installation or replacement of regulated USTs, piping, and *NEW* dispensers; permanent UST closure; change to storage of a nonregulated substance; and *NEW* inspection of an internal UST lining. If the installation or closure date changes by more than 48 hours, the owner or contractor must re-notify the MPCA of the new date.  

• Ten-day advance notice (PDF Version) (t-u5-02)

Tank database

The Tanks Database provides information about registered above-ground and underground storage tanks in Minnesota. The database includes tank site information such as name and location as well as tank characteristics like substance types and capacity. Other tank information in the database includes types of leak detection, corrosion protection, spill protection, and other requirements related to tanks. The database can be searched by site ID, facility name, city, zip code, and county. Tank owners may use the database to verify their own facility information. You can also search for information about one facility or identify all facilities within a city or county.

• Minnesota Aboveground/Underground Storage Tank Site Search (data) 

Tank information and requirements

For specific information about UST and AST requirements, visit:

• Underground storage tank (UST) systems
• Aboveground Storage Tank (AST) Systems

Compliance Inspections and Release Information:

• Underground storage tanks annual summary (c-prp2-06)

Publications

The Tanks program has many useful forms, fact sheets, and guidance documents providing technical and compliance assistance to tank owners and others.

• Storage tank publications

Reporting leaks and spills

Tank owners are required to immediately report a leak or spill of more than five gallons of petroleum, or any amount of a hazardous substance, from any tank or piping.

• To report a leak or spill, call the Minnesota Duty Officer at 800-422-0798 or 651-649-5451. The duty officer is available 24 hours per day, seven days per week.
• Poster: Minnesota Duty Officer (mndutyofficer-poster)

Clean up of leaks and spills

All leaks and spills from USTs and ASTs and associated piping must be cleaned up to protect the environment and public health. Petroleum-related cleanup at facilities with less than one million gallons capacity is managed by the Petroleum Remediation Program. The Brownfields program provides technical assistance and liability assurances necessary to expedite and facilitate the development, transfer, investigation and/or cleanup of property. The Large AST Cleanup Program oversees cleanup actions conducted by companies with petroleum contamination at AST facilities with more than one million gallons capacity.

The Petrofund, administered by the Department of Commerce, provides reimbursement for UST and AST cleanups at sites with petroleum-related contamination with less than one million gallons capacity. Both commercial and residential tank sites are eligible. Petrofund reimbursements are funded by a two-cent per gallon fee paid by bulk petroleum distributors.

Delivery prohibition

The application of a red tag to the fill cap or fill point identifies an ineligible underground or aboveground storage tank.  Deliveries to these tanks are prohibited until the removal of the red tag is authorized by the Commissioner of the MPCA, or the red tag is removed by an Agency certified installer who has provided documentation to the Commissioner that the violations for which the system was red-tagged have been corrected.   

Recycling tanks and waste liquids

If you need to recycle or dispose of a tank, tank-bottom sediments, or fuel-water mixtures, the following list of companies may be helpful. This list is provided as a courtesy and is not an endorsement for any specific company.

• Tank and Waste Petroleum Recyclers (t-u6-02)

Environmental audits

Since 1995, almost 700 tank sites have gone through the MPCA’s Environmental Audit Program. This program allows tank owners to inspect their site, find and disclose violations, and correct them within a specified period of time, without receiving an enforcement action, provided that certain program requirements are met. For a facility to receive a Green Star Award, an audit must be conducted that examines the facility's compliance with all applicable environmental requirements.

• Environmental Audit Program Q and A (ea-p1-01)
• Environmental Audit Program
• Underground storage tank audit checklist (ea-g1-62)

Who To call

To reach any of the following areas of interest from Greater Minnesota, call 800-657-3864 and ask for the either the name of the person or the topic.

Resources and links

• EPA Underground storage tanks
• Emergency Response
• Environmental Audit Program
• Petroleum Remediation Program
• Brownfields (formerly VPIC)
• Petrofund (Minnesota Department of Commerce)
• Minnesota State Fire Code (Minnesota Department of Public Safety)
• Ag chemicals and fertilizers (Minnesota Department of Agriculture)