The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently settled complaints against Cecil Dale, Jr., Wholesale Distributors, Inc., Wend-XX, Inc. and James Michael Cox and Kenneth Cox, Jr., of Arkansas for violations of state and federal underground storage tank regulations.
"Owners and operators of underground storage tanks must maintain their equipment to prevent releases and report releases so they can be addressed appropriately. EPA, in partnership with Arkansas and other states, will continue to enforce all underground storage tank regulations to prevent and detect leaks before they impact our environment and our safety," EPA Regional Administrator Richard E. Greene said.
Cecil Dale, Jr., Wholesale Distributors, Inc., agreed to pay $55,000 for violations at four underground storage tank facilities in Danville, Dardanelle, Paris and Plainview. The violations included failure to upgrade tanks, failure to conduct release detection and failure to provide corrosion protection on underground metal components. The company removed all of the underground storage tanks at the Plainview and Paris facilities and installed corrosion protection systems at the remaining facilities to achieve compliance.
Wend-XX, Inc., agreed to pay $35,000 in penalties for failure to provide adequate monthly release detection for tanks, failure to provide adequate corrosion protection for metal components of underground piping and failure to test corrosion protection systems in accordance with the regulatory testing periods. The Wend-XX facilities are in Hope and Mena.
James Michael Cox and Kenneth Cox, Jr. agreed to pay $18,000 for failure to report a suspected release, failure to provide adequate release detection for the tanks and failure to provide adequate corrosion protection for metal components of underground piping. Their facility is in Hope.
Along with payment of penalties, the owners are required to correct all violations. The violations were found during compliance inspections conducted jointly by the EPA and the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality.
One gallon of gasoline can contaminate approximately five million gallons of drinking water. More than half of the drinking water in the United States is obtained from ground water. Underground storage tank leaks may also cause significant contamination to the soil and ground water and can cause explosions. When a leak is undetected, hazards and cleanup costs increase.
For more information about EPA's underground storage tank program, go to http://www.epa.gov/swerust1/aboutust.htm.
Source: EPA
