Stimulus cash targets leaking tanks

$3.3 million from feds to boost cleanup effort
By SAMMY FRETWELL

sfretwell@thestate.com

South Carolina’s much-criticized effort to clean up pollution from leaking underground storage tanks is getting a $3.3 million stimulus boost from the federal government.

The nation’s Environmental Protection Agency announced the award Friday to the state Department of Health and Environmental Control. The money will be used to assess and clean up underground storage tank petroleum leaks.

It’s a significant chunk of money that will help DHEC with a backlog of sites that have not been cleaned up, agency officials say.

“The 3.3 million is going to be quite a shot in the arm for us,” DHEC spokesman Adam Myrick said. “It is going to help us clear out the backlog a little bit.”
As of last year, South Carolina had about 3,000 sites in need of cleanup — one of the nation’s highest backlogs of sites polluted by underground storage tanks. The EPA previously has threatened federal action if the state did not make more progress to clear the backlog, The State newspaper reported last year.

Leaking underground storage tanks are the largest contributor to underground pollution in South Carolina, a state in which 25 percent to 30 percent of people depend on wells.

DHEC will use the money to concentrate on 66 sites that are high priority for cleanup, Myrick said.The money for South Carolina is part of $197 million appropriated under the federal Recovery Act to address shovel-ready sites nationwide contaminated by petroleum from leaking underground storage tanks.

The funds will be used for overseeing assessment and cleanup of leaks from underground storage tanks or directly paying for assessment and cleanup of leaks from federally regulated tanks where the responsible party is
unknown, unwilling or unable to finance, or the cleanup is an emergency response.
The greatest potential hazard from a leaking underground storage tank is that the petroleum or other hazardous substances seep into the soil and contaminate groundwater, the source of drinking water for nearly one-third of all Americans.

“We’re providing immediate growth opportunities for communities across the nation, as well as long-term protection from dangerous pollution in the land and water,” said EPA administrator Lisa P. Jackson. “EPA is putting people to work by serving our core mission of protecting human health and the environment.”

“The Recovery Act funds will help South Carolina in its effort to provide long-term protection from pollution caused by leaking underground storage tanks,” said Stan Meiburg, EPA acting regional administrator in Atlanta. “The state will use the funds to assess and clean up abandoned tank sites while providing a boost to its economy through the creation of green jobs.”

EPA Region 4’s underground storage tank program will enter into a cooperative agreement with the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control in July. This cooperative agreement will include more detailed descriptions of the state’s spending plan.

President Obama signed the ARRA on Feb. 17, and has directed that the Recovery Act be implemented with unprecedented transparency and accountability. To that end, the American people can visit Recovery.gov to see how every dollar is being invested.
Reach Fretwell at (803) 771-8537.