Section 49-17-405 - Groundwater protection fund; supplemental funding; duties of executive director; liability of tank owners; limitation on provisions of chapter and section(1) There is hereby created the Mississippi Groundwater Protection Trust Fund, hereinafter referred to as the "fund" to be administered by the Executive Director of the Department of Environmental Quality. The commission shall adopt regulations for administering this fund.(2) The commission shall expend or utilize monies up to One Million Dollars ($1,000,000.00) annually in the fund by an annual appropriation approved by the Legislature to supplement all reasonable direct and indirect costs associated with the development and administration of the Underground Storage Tank (UST) Program if the annual tank regulatory fee in Section 49-17-421 does not adequately cover the costs associated with Sections 49-17-401 through 49-17-435. All reasonable direct and indirect costs associated with development and administration of the UST Program, including, but not limited to, the reasonable costs of the following activities as they relate to the UST Program: (a) Preparing generally applicable regulations or guidance regarding the UST Program or its implementation or enforcement;(b) Administering the UST Program, including the supporting and tracking of UST owners/operators and associated UST systems, compliance with UST regulations, the fund, UST-certified contractors, tank fees and related data entry;(c) Implementing and enforcing the terms of the UST regulations; and(d) Investigation, assessment and rehabilitation of contamination sites with restoration or replacement of potable water supplies. At no time shall an annual fund appropriation result in more than supplemental funding for the current annual cost of administering the UST Program.
(3) Whenever in the executive director's determination a release of motor fuels at an active site may pose a threat to the environment or the public health, safety or welfare, the department shall obligate monies available in the fund to provide for:(a) Investigation and assessment of contamination sites;(b) Restoration or replacement of potable water supplies;(c) Rehabilitation of contamination sites, which may consist of cleanup of affected soil, groundwater and inland surface waters, using cost-effective alternatives that are technologically feasible and reliable, and that provide adequate protection of the public health, safety and welfare and minimize environmental damage, in accordance with the site selection and clean-up criteria established by the commission, except that nothing herein shall be construed to authorize the commission to obligate funds for payment of costs which may be associated with, but are not integral to, site rehabilitation, such as the cost for retrofitting or replacing underground storage tanks.(4) Whenever the commission has expended funds from the fund created by Sections 49-17-401 through 49-17-433, the owner of the underground storage tank shall not be liable to the department for such costs if the owner was in substantial compliance on the date on which the discharge of the motor fuels which necessitates the cleanup was reported to the department. Otherwise owners are responsible for reimbursement and the reimbursed monies shall go back into the fund. In such circumstances the commission is authorized to take any necessary action to recover these monies from responsible owners.(5) Any provisions of this section and chapter regarding liability for the costs of cleanup, removal, remediation or abatement of any pollution, hazardous waste or solid waste shall be limited as provided in Section 49-17-42 and rules adopted thereto.Laws, 1988, ch. 547, § 3; Laws, 1995, ch. 627, § 7, eff. 7/1/1995.Amended by Laws, 2022, ch. 460, SB 2158,§ 1, eff. 4/18/2022.