More Underground Storage Tanks Comply as Deadline Approaches
RALEIGH -- The state has received notification from about 6,500 facilities (60 percent) with regulated petroleum underground storage tanks (USTs) that they are or will be in compliance with the December 22, 1998 deadline for upgrading or closing their UST systems.
"This is a significant improvement over the figures a month ago when less than half of the 11,000 facilities required to meet the deadline were in compliance," said Wayne McDevitt, Secretary of the NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources, which oversees the UST Section.
"At the time we made the last announcement, we felt that there were more facilities already in compliance, but we had not yet received notification from them," he said. McDevitt said that the UST Section is being flooded with mail as the deadline draws closer, and that staff are entering the information into the database as quickly as possible.
Even though the upgrade/closure status of more tanks is known, the owners/operators of about 4,400 facilities have still not reported on the status of their tanks. McDevitt said that in some cases, the proper reporting forms may literally be in the mail or awaiting entry into the state's database. Some owners/operators may have done the upgrades or closed their tanks, but failed to report them. Others have done neither.
McDevitt said the state is strongly encouraging those who are not already in compliance to make arrangements to be in compliance by the December 22 deadline. The deadline was set by the federal government. It is the responsibility of the owners/operators to report the status of their tanks using the appropriate form. Without this information, their facilities will be targeted for inspection first and any future operating permits will be withheld until the owners/operators have demonstrated that their tank systems are in compliance.
The federal laws requiring UST systems to have corrosion protection, spill prevention and overfill prevention or close by the December 22, 1998 deadline, were enacted 10 years ago in an effort to prevent pollution and protect groundwater resources nationwide. Leaking USTs have been, and continue to be, a major source of groundwater pollution. In North Carolina, more than half of the state's citizens rely on groundwater resources for their drinking water.
If the state finds UST systems in violation after the December 22 deadline, the owners/operators will be subject to civil penalties for the period of non-compliance, as well as possible revocation or denial of an annual operating permit. The maximum penalty is up to $10,000 per day per violation.
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Date Posted: 12/18/98
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