The Compliance Hit You Didn't See Coming

Ever feel confident you’re following the rules… only to find out the rules changed? 

In this episode of Tank Talk, Shannon and Haley talk about one of the most common compliance pitfalls in environmental operations: regulations evolving quietly in the background while day-to-day operations keep moving. 

Just like driving down a familiar road where the speed limit suddenly changed, facilities can unknowingly fall out of compliance when regulations are updated after a plan, permit, or audit was completed. 

We’re seeing this happen more and more in air and water regulations, where updates can occur on unpredictable timelines. A report that confirmed compliance a few years ago may no longer reflect the current regulatory landscape. 

So how do operators avoid getting blindsided? 

Shannon shares seven practical strategies that facility managers and environmental professionals can use to stay ahead of regulatory changes. 

The conversation also covers what happens when regulations change, how transition periods typically work, and what to do if you discover you’re already past a compliance deadline. 

If you manage fuel facilities, environmental programs, or regulatory plans, this episode offers practical steps to help ensure your compliance program doesn’t quietly expire in the background. 

We’ve included a resource list with helpful agency webpages, industry groups, and notification lists that can help you stay informed when regulations change. 

Remember: compliance is a point in time — and it can change without warning.

Download the guide: 7 Ways To Stay Ahead of Regulatory Changes — Integrity Environmental

Transcript

Welcome And The Blindside Problem

SPEAKER_01 0:09

Welcome to Tank Talk with Integrity Environmental. Join us as we sit down with founder, principal consultant, and bulk fuel storage expert Shannon Olkers to explore regulations, safety, and essential tips for navigating the bulk fuel storage industry. Join us as we explore the unique joys of work and life in Alaska with industry experts, including our team, vendors we work with, and the companies we support. Hi, welcome to Tank Talk. This episode is about being caught flat footed, not necessarily because of negligence, but because the rules evolved while operations didn't slow down. Shannon, have you ever been blindsided by a rule change?

SPEAKER_02 0:52

Oh, well, there's a section of road by my house, Haley, and for years the speed limit was 55. But after some construction, they lowered the speed limit to 45, and I did not notice until uh Officer Perfect pulled me over. We're going too fast.

SPEAKER_01 1:07

Oh no. How did that feel, Shannon? It felt wonderful. Just kidding.

When Compliance Quietly Expires

SPEAKER_02 1:13

It felt terrible. I was really certain though that I wasn't speeding. So much so that after the cop gave me a warning, thankfully, I turned around and drove that same chunk of road again to look at the speed limit sign because I was right. I knew it. And what do you know? It had gone down by 10 miles an hour. And I was wrong.

SPEAKER_01 1:30

Well, I'd like to help our listeners avoid that blind-sided feeling today. We're seeing regulations changing so fast that older permits and regulatory analysis are out of compliance. But just like you, the operator is pretty, if not very confident, that they are still in compliance.

SPEAKER_02 1:46

Yeah, we have seen this crop up a lot, especially with recent changes to the air and water regulations. They're just coming so fast, it is difficult to stay ahead of it.

SPEAKER_01 1:54

Well, great, but I mean, not great. But let's start, as always, with why this is a problem.

Why Regulation Timing Is Messy

SPEAKER_02 2:01

Well, I think the biggest problem is that time moves faster than you think. You pay a consultant four or five years ago to evaluate your compliance on an issue, they get you a report or an audit, and you proudly put that bad boy up on the shelf. And then two years later, the EPA issues an update to that regulation. But you are busy running a fuel company, you've got this new air quote report telling you that you're compliant. It's pretty easy to just let life roll on while you think you are compliant.

SPEAKER_01 2:27

So, do regulations renew on a set schedule? Is this something that you can just solve by checking in on a regular basis?

SPEAKER_02 2:34

Ooh, that would be common sense and really wonderful, but Haley, we are dealing with the government.

SPEAKER_01 2:40

So, no set schedule then.

SPEAKER_02 2:43

Nope. I'm sorry, Haley. Regulations are all over the place. Some like the multi-sector general permit, which handles stormwater regulations and permitting, uh, that renews every five-ish years. The one in Alaska is currently on year six, so it's not always five. Others like the spill prevention, control, and countermeasures or SPCC regulations, those take literal acts of Congress to change, so they very rarely change. But most are somewhere in the middle where changing politics and there's things called agency initiatives that drive changes and weird, odd cycles that are kind of hard to predict.

SPEAKER_01 3:17

Yeah, that sounds so confusing.

SPEAKER_02 3:19

It sure is. It sure is, Haley.

SPEAKER_01 3:21

So confusing. So how does integrity, how do we track all of these regulatory updates?

How We Track Regulatory Updates

SPEAKER_02 3:27

It's a process. We have a big master list of all the regulations that impact our clients that are sorted by industry, seafood, utilities, fuel storage, and transport. We regularly check in with agencies, agency websites. We are members of very specific and targeted industry groups. We attend conference sessions, we leverage our network. I won't lie, it is a massive amount of work that requires everybody on our staff to constantly be paying attention.

SPEAKER_01 3:52

Oof, I feel like I've seen that workload live in action. But how is the average tank farm or facility manager ever supposed to do all of that?

SPEAKER_02 4:00

Well, fortunately for the average facility or environmental manager, they usually only need to know one or two industries worth of regulation, which makes it a little more manageable, but it can still be a pretty heavy lift.

Seven Ways To Stay Current

SPEAKER_01 4:11

Well, do you have any suggestions for our listeners on how to avoid becoming blindsided? I do. I actually have a couple of ideas, seven of them. So maybe lucky number seven for today. Amazing. Okay, let's go through these one by one. Number one, set an annual calendar reminder.

SPEAKER_02 4:29

Yes. Set aside some time each year to do a little internet sleuthing on the plans that you have. Most agencies have websites for the specific plan type that announces upcoming changes, if there are any. Most states also have pages for the multisector general permit, stormwater. The EPA has pages for the SPCC and the facility response plan. The U.S. Coast Guard has a page for the facility response plan, but sorry, Coast Guard, your website is awful.

unknown 4:56

I don't know.

SPEAKER_02 4:56

It's not very helpful. But there is one. Checking these pages at least once a year can really help you stay up to date and not fall too far behind or miss some big change that's out there.

SPEAKER_01 5:08

Number two, pay attention to renewal dates in your permit.

SPEAKER_02 5:12

That's right. Most permits have updates and revisions when they renew, if that is how the regulation is set up. Not all regs are set up that way. But if they are, you want to make sure that you're tracking those renewal dates and start looking for information and announcements about the renewal a year to six months before the permit expires because they're going to announce the changes before they show up.

SPEAKER_01 5:31

Number three, sign up for listserves from federal and state agencies.

SPEAKER_02 5:36

This is an older technology for our younger listeners, but it is a really efficient way to receive notices of when draft regulations are coming out. Public comment periods are often announced through these listservs, and then also when the final draft will be issued. So pay attention to those emails. The big caution here, though, that we found is many of these listservs require you to renew your subscription periodically. And it is so easy to miss that click here to stay on this listserv email. So they kind of quietly go away and you don't notice that they're gone. It's also easy to ignore a listserv that has like a broad range of updates that only a few of apply to you. And I'm going to side-eye the EPA's notification system. It is really hard to neck that down to just what you need. You have to sign up and then get a fire hose of information from them.

SPEAKER_01 6:22

Number four, attend industry events.

SPEAKER_02 6:26

Yes. Attend the events. And here's this crazy idea. Actually, go to the sessions on the types of permits you have, not just the after-hour social events. Ask lots of questions. Network with the intention of identifying any new changes that are coming up. You can even ask at the end of a session. I get asked this all the time when I present. Are there any changes coming up that I should know about? And I am happy to fill that gap if you need me to.

Commercial 6:58

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SPEAKER_01 8:15

Number five is phone a friend.

SPEAKER_02 8:18

Yes, other managers, vendors, and even clients you know may have heard something that you didn't and can give you a heads up. So again, this is something that may be worth setting a calendar reminder to just call other people in your industry. And same thing, anything coming down the pipe that I need to know about.

SPEAKER_01 8:35

Number six, my favorite on the list. Be friends with your consultant. This one is so important, and not just because I'm a consultant.

SPEAKER_02 8:44

I just want to say some people have relationships with consultants where they only call them when you think you need them. And that's fine. But that means the consultant is not necessarily going to reach out to you when regulations change. Keep in mind that consultants are often flooded with work when regulations change. They've got to get it all done for their client list. And they're doing everything they can to get it done within these kind of tight deadlines often. So it can be as simple as just having a relationship with them where you call them once a year, check in for a simple meeting to catch up on a routine basis. Invite them to your workplace. I mean, I go to people's workplace all the time just to say hi and catch up. And I think that that's important to just having that relationship. It builds the proactive instead of training your consultant to wait for you to call them.

SPEAKER_01 9:30

For sure. Hand in hand with number six is number seven, which is be friends with your regulators.

SPEAKER_02 9:37

I know. I know this one is really hard for some people. I know some of our listeners are rolling their eyes right now. But calling up the state every once in a while, the EPA is a little harder. They're not as friendly, but your local state and local are more. But calling them up every once in a while and asking them what's coming up can really help you stay on top of those upcoming regulatory changes. And it places you in the role of the good actor. And that's something we talk about in the industry as someone who wants to do good. And you can be that role without necessarily tipping your hat about whether or not you are compliant. You can just call and ask open-ended questions. Hi, I operate a fuel farm in Alaska, and I would like to know if there's anything coming down the pipe that I should be aware of. Also, just as a pro level tip, if an agency sponsors an event, it posts a webinar, attend those. If an agency is making an effort to communicate something to your industry, it is pretty smart to go and listen to it. They don't do it as often. So it's important to pay attention to those.

Grace Periods And New Builds

SPEAKER_01 10:33

Okay. These are all really good, really proactive suggestions. But I'm curious, what happens if you miss one of these regulatory changes?

SPEAKER_02 10:41

Dun dun dun. You go directly to jail. Haley, you do not collect$200. Just kidding. The good news is that most regulations have a transition period after they are put into effect. For some regulations, it's as short as like 120 days. For others, typically federal ones, they could be as much as three years. Sometimes, for really big changes, it can be a very long compliance window. For example, there's a regulation in Hawaii that underground storage tanks cannot be within 300 feet of a shoreline. And they have given the industry 30 total years to make the changeover. So for any existing underground storage tank within that zone, it can continue to operate until 2045. But at that point, they it will no longer be allowed to operate and it has to be removed. And no new USTs can be built in the zone after that law was passed in 2015. So by 2045, I personally hope to be sipping my ties in Hawaii on the beach, but it's a good example of a regulation that is helping to remove an identified threat and allow vendors and clients to plan capital expenditure projects around, giving you that big long window.

SPEAKER_01 11:48

So after each regulation gets passed, you have a transition period to become compliant? Yes, and no.

SPEAKER_02 11:55

So there's a kicker. There's a kicker on these grace periods, Haley, and that is that if you build something new after a regulation is passed, typically the new build has to be compliant right away. You don't get to wait three years to the end of that transition period on new infrastructure. The grace period only applies to existing infrastructure and facility components. But I do want to insert a legal disclaimer here because sometimes, very infrequently, a regulation is passed with no grace period. But if you're doing all those seven steps that we just talked about to avoid being blindsided, you should know about that specific piece ahead of time.

SPEAKER_01 12:29

So I want to cover all the bases for our listeners. What if you find out that you are years past compliance, like way, way past the grace period?

SPEAKER_02 12:38

Well, Haley, this is where I like to quote my Angelou and say, when you know better, you do better. If you find out you're years late to a party, get a consultant, get compliant, get straight with whatever agency you are sideways with. It is always more cost-effective to meet this head on and be proactive than to try to keep dodging it. It just never works out well in my experience.

SPEAKER_01 12:57

I think one of my favorite things we do is how we can break down these complicated concepts into steps a regular person can follow. Do you think we can provide a handout to support staying on top of these regulations?

Key Takeaways And Disclaimer

SPEAKER_02 13:08

I do. That's a great idea, Haley. Absolutely. We can include some of the web pages for permit types that we know are more common among our listeners and maybe some of the industry groups we found to be valuable. And then I will include some listservs that we subscribe to as well. Does that sound good? That sounds amazing. I'll get that into the show notes for sure. Thank you so much, Haley. I hope everyone listening understands that it's very easy to become complacent and have full faith that you're compliant. Well, in the background, the regulations are changing and you are not. I just want everyone to remember that compliance is a point in time. It can expire quietly in the background when the regulations change. So stay ahead of the rules, keep your plans current, and don't let your operation become blindsided. Thank you, everyone. Hi there, this is Shannon Olkers. And as the owner of Integrity Environmental, I wanted to take a minute here at the end of the podcast to make sure that you knew the following. This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be considered legal or regulatory advice. We are not responsible for any losses, damages, or liabilities that may arise from the use of this podcast. This podcast is not intended to replace professional, regulatory, or legal advice. And the views expressed in this podcast may not be those of the host, that would be me, or Integrity Environmental. Thank you very much for listening. And if you do need professional regulatory advice, we'd be happy to help you as part of our consulting services.