Federal Requirements Will Decrease Nation's LUST

The nation’s groundwater will be better protected as of December 22 when federal requirements go into effect to upgrade leaking underground storage tank (LUST) systems. The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) today called the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requirements the minimum actions that tank owners and operators should take to prevent leaks, and said that the majority of regulated tanks have already upgraded to meet EPA’s standards.

“LUST is a serious problem, but it’s getting better as a result of EPA’s regulations,” said Lois Epstein, EDF senior engineer. “Hundreds of thousands of underground tanks and their piping have confirmed leaks that contaminate groundwater. Approximately 40 percent of the water the US uses in its cities and to irrigate farms comes from groundwater.” The number of leaking tank systems does not include home heating oil tanks and other tanks not federally regulated. Click here to view a map showing the percent of the population by state that drinks groundwater (1990 data).

To meet the EPA tank upgrade requirements, fuel tanks must have corrosion protection, and spill and overfill prevention features. EDF recommends, as several states already have required, that states go beyond the federal rules and require tank owners to install double-walled tanks and piping. “If gas stations do not upgrade their tanks and piping, they eventually will have contamination problems. Just as buildings need to meet electrical codes to avoid safety hazards, tanks need to upgrade to avoid environmental hazards.”

“These regulations only begin to protect the nation’s groundwater from oil contamination,” said Epstein. “We also need federal standards to prevent leaks from aboveground tanks, and we need standards to prevent leaks in the pipelines that carry oil.” According to industry statistics, more than eight of 10 monitored aboveground storage tank facilities, or tank farms, have leaks that are contaminating groundwater.

EDF has published a citizens’ guide to LUST. The guide details the new requirements and offers a plan for states and communities to address the problem of leaking tanks. To obtain a copy of the action guide, contact EDF.

Summary of EPA UST Program Regulations and EDF’s Recommended Improvements for State UST Programs, adapted from Citizen Action: An Ounce of Prevention, Part 2, from the Environmental Defense Fund.