USA Today Article (12/10/98)
Gas stations may close over leak concern
State-by-state compliance list
About 40% of the nation's underground fuel tanks aren't certified as
leak-free with a federal groundwater quality deadline less than two
weeks away, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says.
Service station owners, fleet operators and government agencies are
rushing to meet the Dec. 22 deadline to avoid fines up to $11,000 a
day. Some states are planning to order all tanks out of service that
haven't met the requirement.
The regulation is expected to hit hardest in rural communities, where
independent service-station operators may be forced out of business
because they won't be able to afford to make improvements required
under the regulation.
"I can't afford it," says Vance Burrows, a repair garage owner who
stopped selling gas indefinitely Wednesday at the Union 76-brand
station he's operated for 19 years in Onaway, Mich. Many of his
customers will be "down in the dumps" because he's the only
full-service station in town, he adds. Michigan is among states planning to order out of service tanks that don't comply immediately.
The 1988 regulations stem from a law requiring tank owners to install
devices to prevent corrosion of their metal tanks, or install rust-proof fiberglass tanks. The goal is to prevent leaks that could let gasoline seep into ground water.
"Folks have had 10 years to prepare for this. If you haven't by now, we don't feel too sorry for you," says Harry Murphy of the Service Station Dealers of America.
Compliance varies. A state survey by a coalition of six trade groups
found Alabama with the most non-compliance at 79.7% and Wyoming with the least at 5% as of Nov. 24.
The EPA expects the percentage of non-complying tanks to narrow to
25% by the deadline.
Major oil companies are in compliance at their company-owned
locations, which comprise about 20% of the nation's 182,600 stations.
But independents are the biggest concern. About 75% of the tanks in
Alabama belong to operators with only a single location. "We really are afraid there are a lot of small businesses that will not be able to comply," says Sonja Massey, Alabama's groundwater safety chief.
Some private operators, from school bus owners to police departments, may empty and cap their tanks rather than try to get them
certified. The deadline "is forcing people to make a decision: Do I really need this tank?" says Herb Meade, Maryland's compliance chief.
By Chris Woodyard, USA TODAY
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