States, Towns Behind on Replacing Underground Tanks.Leaking underground storage tanks have created contention among federal regulators, state policymakers and gasoline station owners for a number of years. Federal regulations now penalize pe·nal·ize tr.v. pe·nal·ized, pe·nal·iz·ing, pe·nal·iz·es 1. To subject to a penalty, especially for infringement of a law or official regulation. See Synonyms at punish. 2. owners who failed to upgrade or replace tanks with leakproof models by 1998. But many state and local governments didn't meet the deadline, and it could cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of dollars in fines. The Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), independent agency of the U.S. government, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1970 to reduce and control air and water pollution, noise pollution, and radiation and to ensure the safe handling and notes that roughly half the nation draws its drinking water drinking water supply of water available to animals for drinking supplied via nipples, in troughs, dams, ponds and larger natural water sources; an insufficient supply leads to dehydration; it can be the source of infection, e.g. leptospirosis, salmonellosis, or of poisoning, e.g. from public and private wells and aquifers. The old, single-wall underground fuel tanks can leak and contaminate con·tam·i·nate v. 1. To make impure or unclean by contact or mixture. 2. To expose to or permeate with radioactivity. con·tam·i·nant n. that water supply, requiring costly cleanup. Several New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of state agencies illegally operate 350 tanks, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. The state claims, however, that only 74 of its tanks are out of compliance. New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. officials are negotiating a penalty for operating 614 tanks past the 1998 upgrade deadline. A New Jersey state-managed database lists 440 tanks operated by public agencies and governmental bodies that are being used illegally. The Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection tracks the 2,027 non-compliant underground fuel tanks in its jurisdiction; 25 percent are owned by a town, city or the state. At least 19 Connecticut cities and towns--including Hartford, New Haven, Waterbury and Danbury--have been fined or cited for fuel tank violations, often after rivers and groundwater have been contaminated. |
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