Environmental Protection: Improved Inspections and Enforcement Would BetterEnsure the Safety of Underground Storage Tanks

摘要

In 1984, because of concerns about risks posed from leaking tanks, the Congressestablished the Underground Storage Tank (UST) program to monitor the more than 2 million tanks active at the time, most of which were located at gas stations across the country. Administered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the UST program was designed to prevent releases of petroleum and hazardous substances into the environment, detect releases when they occurred, and clean up any contamination from a release. To monitor this large number of tanks, EPA has enlisted states assistance in implementing and enforcing the UST program. Concerned that the tank program is not effectively preventing leaks and that tanks continue to pose risks, Congress asked the General Accounting Office (GAO) to determine (1) whether the tanks regulated by EPA and the states have the required equipment and are being properly operated and maintained, (2) the breadth of EPAs and the states tank inspections and the types of enforcement actions taken, and (3) whether upgraded tanks were still leaking. To address your questions, we obtained information via survey from tank program managers in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.