Soil characteristics.

(a) Soil investigations including borings and other appropriate tests must be made at the site of each LNG facility to determine bearing capacity, settlement characteristics, potential for erosion, and other soil characteristics applicable to the integrity of the facility.

(b) The naturally occurring or designed soil characteristics at each LNG facility site must provide load bearing capacities, using appropriate safety factors, which can support the following loads without excessive lateral or vertical movement that causes a loss of the functional or structural integrity of the facility involved:

(1) Static loading caused by the facility and its contents and any hydrostatic testing of the facility; and

(2) Dynamic loading caused by movement of contents of the facility during normal operation, including flow, sloshing, and rollover.