7 Companies Settle With EPA Over Alleged Underground Storage Tank Violations

The Environmental Safety Company (EPA) has taken motion towards a number of firms together with gasoline station operators in New Jersey, New York and the U.S. Virgin Islands to deal with alleged violations of federal legal guidelines relating to the upkeep and operation of underground petroleum storage tank methods.

In separate settlements, the businesses have agreed to conform and pay penalties.

When not correctly operated and maintained, underground storage tanks (USTs) can leak petroleum and different hazardous substances, threatening soil and water high quality. EPA’s rules stop and detect gasoline releases that would contaminate groundwater and pose dangers to folks’s well being and the surroundings.

“EPA’s necessities are designed to make sure correct upkeep of underground storage tanks. When these tanks are usually not correctly maintained, they’ll leak and put folks and the surroundings in danger,” stated EPA Regional Administrator Lisa F. Garcia.

The current settlements embody:

• In New Jersey, ADPP Enterprises, Inc., and APM Administration, Inc., operators of 13 gasoline stations in New Jersey, settled a case with the EPA for violating federal guidelines on USTs storing gasoline or diesel gasoline. The EPA found that the gasoline stations didn’t adjust to spill prevention, leak detection, inspection, and report holding necessities for USTs between 2018 and 2020. The gasoline station homeowners have agreed to pay a $175,000 penalty and certify their compliance with the UST guidelines at their amenities.
• Wawa, Inc., a New Jersey-based firm that operates gasoline stations and comfort shops, has settled with the EPA for violating federal rules on USTs containing gasoline or diesel gasoline. Following inspections at 9 Wawa amenities in February and March of 2022, EPA decided the corporate had failed to satisfy operator coaching, report holding, and leak detection necessities for USTs. Wawa has agreed to pay a civil penalty of $26,500 and certify its compliance with UST rules at its amenities.
• In New York, EPA discovered Dutchess Terminals, Inc., ANK Realty Inc., and Truthful Oak, Inc., three firms that personal and function underground storage tanks storing gasoline or diesel gasoline at 11 amenities throughout New York State, in violation of federal guidelines on monetary accountability, leak detection, spill prevention, and UST inspection necessities between November 2017 and April 2019. The businesses have agreed to pay a $150,000 penalty and certify their compliance with the UST guidelines at their amenities.
• AT&T Transoceanic Comm. LLC, which owns and operates underground tanks storing gasoline for emergency energy turbines at 28 amenities in New York, New Jersey, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, violated federal guidelines on spill prevention, inspections, and operator coaching at three of its amenities within the U.S. Virgin Islands, which EPA inspected in 2022. The corporate has agreed to pay a $40,000 penalty and conduct a complete audit of its compliance with all UST guidelines at its New York and New Jersey amenities.

In accordance with the EPA, roughly 542,000 underground storage tanks nationwide retailer petroleum or hazardous substances.

Supply: EPA

Subjects
New York
New Jersey
Pollution