Definitions
HRS §342L-1
in effect342L-1. Definitions
As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:
"Complaint" means any written charge
filed with or by the department that a person is violating or has violated any
provision of this chapter or any rule adopted pursuant to this chapter, or a
permit, variance, or order issued pursuant to this chapter.
"Department" means the department of
health.
"Director" means the director of
health.
"Existing underground storage tank"
or "existing tank" or "existing underground storage tank system"
or "existing tank system" means an underground storage tank or tank
system for which installation commenced not later than December 22, 1988.
Installation is considered to have commenced if:
(1) The owner or operator has obtained all federal,
state, and county approvals or permits necessary to begin physical construction
of the site or installation of the underground storage tank or tank system; and
(2) Either a continuous on-site physical construction
or installation program has begun or the owner or operator has entered into
contractual obligations (which cannot be canceled or modified without
substantial loss) for physical construction at the site or installation of the
underground storage tank or tank system to be completed within a reasonable
time.
"Operator" means any person in
control of, or having responsibility for, the daily operation of the
underground storage tank.
"Owner" means:
(1) In the case of a particular underground storage
tank or tank system in use or brought into use on or after November 8, 1984,
any person who owns an underground storage tank or tank system; and
(2) In the case of a particular underground storage
tank or tank system in use before November 8, 1984, but no longer in use after
that date, any person who owned such a tank or tank system immediately before
the discontinuation of its use.
"Party" means each person or agency
named as a party or properly entitled to be a party in any court or agency
proceeding.
"Permit" means written authorization
from the director to install or operate an underground storage tank or tank
system. A permit authorizes the owner or operator to install and operate an
underground storage tank or tank system in a manner, or to do any act, not
forbidden by this chapter or by rules adopted under this chapter, but requiring
review by the department.
"Person" means an individual, trust,
estate, firm, joint stock company, corporation (including a government
corporation), partnership, association, commission, consortium, joint venture,
commercial entity, the State or a county, the United States government, federal
agency, interstate body, or any other legal entity.
"Petroleum" means petroleum,
including crude oil or any fraction thereof which is liquid at standard
conditions of temperature and pressure (60 degrees Fahrenheit and 14.7 pounds
per square inch absolute).
"Provider of financial assurance"
means a person that provides evidence of financial responsibility for one or
more underground storage tanks or tank systems.
"Regulated substance" means an
element, compound, mixture, solution, or substance that, when released into the
environment, may present substantial danger to human health, welfare, or the
environment. The term includes:
(1) Any substance defined in section 101(14) of the
federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act
of 1980 (but not including any substance regulated as a hazardous waste under
Subtitle C of the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act);
(2) Petroleum; and
(3) Any other substance as designated by the
department.
"Release" includes, but is not
limited to, any spilling, leaking, emitting, discharging, escaping, leaching,
or disposing from an underground storage tank or tank system.
"Shoreline" means the upper reaches
of the wash of the waves, other than storm and seismic waves, at high tide
during the season of the year in which the highest wash of the waves occurs,
usually evidenced by the edge of vegetation growth, or the upper limit of
debris left by the wash of the waves.
"Soil remediation site" means
designated state-owned land set aside for the purpose of remediating
contaminated soils.
"Underground storage tank" or "tank"
means any one or combination of tanks (including pipes connected thereto) used
to contain an accumulation of regulated substances, and the volume of which
(including the volume of the underground pipes connected thereto) is ten per
cent or more beneath the surface of the ground. This term does not include
any:
(1) Farm or residential tank of one thousand one
hundred gallons or less capacity used for storing motor fuel for noncommercial
purposes;
(2) Tank used for storing heating oil for consumptive
use on the premises where stored;
(3) Septic tank;
(4) Pipeline facility (including gathering lines)
regulated under:
(A) The federal Natural Gas Pipeline Safety
Act of 1968, Public Law 90-481, as amended; or
(B) The federal Hazardous Liquid Pipeline
Safety Act of 1979, Public Law 96-129, as amended;
(5) Surface impoundment, pit, pond, or lagoon;
(6) Storm water or wastewater collection system;
(7) Flow-through process tank;
(8) Liquid trap or associated gathering lines
directly related to oil or gas production and gathering operations; and
(9) Storage tank situated in an underground area
(such as a basement, cellar, mineworking, drift, shaft, or tunnel) if the
storage tank is situated upon or above the surface of the floor.
"Underground storage tank system" or "tank
system" means an underground storage tank, connected underground piping,
underground ancillary equipment, and containment system, if any.
"Variance" means special written
authorization from the director to own, install, or operate an underground
storage tank or tank system in a manner deviating, or to do an act that
deviates, from the requirements of rules adopted under this chapter.
[L 1989, c
212, pt of §6; am L 1992, c 259, §3; am L 2016, c 179, §3]
Source: Hawaii State Legislature (capitol.hawaii.gov), via Internet Archive capturesURL: http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol06_Ch0321-0344/HRS0342L/HRS_0342L-0001.htmFetched: 11/10/2026