Features of the design and construction of a gas station, gas station complex

Features of the design and construction of a gas station, gas station complex

As you know, gas stations use explosive substances – gasoline, diesel fuel, liquefied natural gas (LNG), or their combination. Therefore, this type of planned activity poses an increased hazard to the environment. The construction or reconstruction of this type of planned activity is subject of the environmental impact assessment (EIA) procedure and, in accordance with the Law of Ukraine “On environmental impact assessment”, belongs to the II category. The gas station can be additionally equipped with a small cafe, supermarket, car wash, parking lot, etc. and can be  called a filling station complex or gas/petrol station complex.

The main regulatory requirements for the construction or reconstruction of gas stations are defined by :

• The procedure for acceptance and retail trade (Decree of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated 12.20.1997 No. 1442 “On approval of the Rules for retail trade in petroleum products” (hereinafter – the Rules)).
• State Building Standards 2.2-12:2019 “Planning and Development of Territories” and Clause 3 of the Rules – placement of gas stations in settlements and outside them, including distance from gas station to other buildings.
• State Building Standards 2.5-20:2018 “Gas supply” and State Building Standards V.2.5-20-2018 “Gas supply. Engineering equipment of buildings and structures” – placement of automobile gas filling stations and liquefied gas points. The norms regulate the design of new construction, reconstruction, repair and re-equipment of existing gas supply systems.
• State Building Standards V.1.1.7-2016 “Fire safety of construction objects”.
• State Building Standards V.2.3-5:2018 “Streets and roads of settlements”.
• The Law of Ukraine “On Roads” – when improving the design of roads in the areas where gas stations are located.

To determine the functional purpose, parameters of the plot of land for the location of the gas station, to determine the urban planning conditions and restrictions on the development of the plot of land (initial data for the design of the object), to form an opportunity for further design and construction, a detailed site plan is being developed. During the construction of a new gas station, first of all, the documents for the land plot are drawn up. At the initial stage of design, engineering-geological and topographic-geodetic surveys are carried out, where, in particular, the distance from key infrastructure objects within or outside the city/settlement is assessed in accordance with current state standards. By classification, gas stations are divided into stationary, mobile and container. The most common are stationary gas stations, that are a complex of facilities for receiving and dispensing petroleum products with ground or underground placement of tanks and fuel, oil, and gas dispensers. Design works include the solution of volume-planning, technical and technological tasks, operational and economic indicators. If there are social and office annexes on the territory of the gas station, an artesian well is located for which a permit for special water use is required. It is forbidden to place gas stations within residential areas, in the central planning zone of the city or in its historical part.

Reconstruction of gas stations may include:

– replacement of tanks, pipelines, technological and fuel dispensing equipment;

– installation of additional equipment;

– installation or replacement of oil and gas products, fuel vapor recovery systems;

– installation of separators for cleaning spilled oil products, etc.

The construction or reconstruction of the facility after passing the environmental impact assessment (EIA) procedure must also include obtaining a permit for emissions of pollutants into the atmospheric air by stationary sources. However, as noted by the State Environmental Inspectorate, as of 2021, about 45% of gas stations did not have such a permit or a statement on the EIA, and about 20% did not have a permit for special water use.

The MCL company provides a full range of services related to the design and obtaining of permits, such as the Environmental Impact Assessment statement, for emissions of pollutants into the atmospheric air and for  Special Water Use.