United States Office of Underground Environmental Protection Storage Tanks Agency Washington, D.C. 20460 March 1987 &EPA THE trust fund for leaking UNDERGROUND STORAGE TANKS ~ Facts and Figures ~ The Fund Before and After Regulations A FUND TO CLEAN UP PETROLEUM LEAKS There are approximately 1.4 million underground tanks in the United States that store petroleum products and are subject to regulation by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). These tanks are located throughout the country, mainly at gas stations and other retailers of petroleum products. Thousands are leaking dangerous contaminants into the soil and groundwater and, in some cases, into drinking water supplies. In 1986, Congress amended the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) to provide Federal funds to clean up petroleum leaks and spills from underground storage tanks (USTs). The funds will strengthen current cleanup and enforcement efforts of many States and localities. This fact sheet summarizes the main features of the Leaking UST Trust Fund and outlines EPA's plans to administer the Fund. MOTOR FUEL TAXES WILL GENERATE $500 MILLION The UST Trust Fund is being financed by a tax of 1/10 of one cent per gallon on motor fuels, which will raise $500 million over the next five years. The RCRA amendments, enacted in October 1986, authorized EPA to clean up petroleum leaks and spills from USTs with Trust Fund money and also make funds available to States for cleanups. EPA, in fact, intends to make the majority of Trust Fund dollars available to States. In Spring 1987, EPA will begin distributing money to States that develop acceptable plans for using the Fund. STATES' ROLE WILL BE KEY States are expected to play a key role in Trust Fund cleanups because State officials are generally closer to the scene and know more about tanks in their States and about local site conditions than Federal officials. EPA is encouraging States to enter into cooperative agreements which will specify how the States will use the funds. Once entered into, these agreements will enable States to tap the Trust Fund immediately. EPA AND STATES CAN ORDER, AS WELL AS CONDUCT, CLEANUPS When a petroleum leak or spill is discovered, EPA and States will not always use the Trust Fund to conduct the cleanup. In most instances, they will order the tank owner or operator to undertake the cleanup. EPA plans to respond directly only to leaks that pose an immediate danger. The intent of Congress is that tank owners or operators pay for cleanups. EPA and/States may compel the tank owners and operators to undertake, or pay for, any of the following actions: Test tanks for suspected leaks; Excavate a site to investigate the extent of contamination; Assess how many individuals may have been exposed to petroleum contaminants and the seriousness of the exposure; Clean up contaminated soil and water; Provide safe drinking water to residents whose supplies have been contaminated by a tank leak; and If necessary, relocate residents temporarily or permanently. ------- TANK OWNERS, OPERATORS MUST SHOW "FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY" In establishing the Trust Fund, Congress also asked EPA to require that tank owners and operators be able to prove to inspectors that they are "financially responsible." This means that they must be able to pay for cleanups and, if necessary, compensate people or businesses for damages they suffered because of the leaks. These cleanups and damages can be very expensive. Congress, therefore, set minimum coverage for "financial responsibility" at $1 million per occurrence for tanks at facilities that produce, refine, or market petroleum. If necessary, EPA can suspend enforcement of "financial responsibility" requirements temporarily. This might occur, for example, if insurance and other types of financial assurance were not available to certain groups of tank owners. EPA expects to issue financial responsibility regulations in 1988, after soliciting comments from industry and the public. These regulations will specify: 1) the amounts of insurance that owners and operators must have, 2) how to prove "financial responsibility" and 3) the types of insurance or guarantees that they will be permitted to use. EPA intends to issue additional regulations pertaining to USTs. These are summarized under the heading "Other Aspects of EPA's Program to Control Tank Releases." FUNDS WILL BE AVAILABLE IN 1987; RULES CHANGE IN 1988 In 1987, EPA plans to solicit applications from States that want to enter into cooperative agreements to gain access to Trust Fund money. Because authority to use the Fund will change after EPA's UST regulations take effect, currently scheduled for 1988, a before-and-after comparison is included with this fact sheet. (See "The Fund Before and After Regulations.") In summary, after the regulations go into effect, EPA eacpects the Trust Fund to be used primarily for emergencies and cleanups in which: Costs exceed the amount of coverage that tank owners and operators are required to maintain, and Fund expenditures are necessary to assure an effective corrective action; A solvent owner or operator cannot be found; or The owner or operator fails to comply with a cleanup order. Tank owners and operators will be liable to EPA qr the State for- the costs incurred in cleaning bp leaks or spills from their tanks. EPA or thar/Stsftd**J can take action against the owner or operator to recover these costs. After the UST regulations go into effect, States will be required to pay 10 percent of the^posta..Qt cleanup actions paid for Wftff TTusf"Fund money. TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE TRUST FUND A question-and-answer document is available. It provides further details. You can also call the EPA Hotline, 800-424-9346 (in Washington, D.C., 382-3000), or call or write to the UST Coordinator in your EPA Region. (See attached list.) OTHER ASPECTS OF EPA'S PROGRAM TO CONTROL TANK RELEASES Congress has given EPA several means of addressing petroleum releases from USTs. Besides administering the UST Trust Fund and issuing financial responsibility regulations, EPA plans to propose the following in 1987: Technical standards for new tanks; Regulations for new and existing tanks, which will cover: o Cleanup actions; o Reporting and recordkeeping; o Leak detection; o Tank closure; and o Overfill protection; and State program approval regulations. Final rules are scheduled to be published in 1988. The EPA Office of Underground Storage Tanks (OUST) has been established to develop and manage the leak prevention and cleanup programs. In addition, EPA has appointed UST Coordinators in each of the Agency's 10 Regions to implement the program and to negotiate cooperative agreements with States. Names, addresses, and telephone numbers of Regional UST Coordinators are listed on the accompanying page. ------- EPA REGIONAL UST COORDINATORS William Torrey U.S. EPA, Region I Kennedy Bldg., Rm. 1903 Boston, MA 02203 617-223-1595 Tom Taccone U.S. EPA, Region II 26 Federal Plaza, Rm. 906 New York, NY 10278 212-264-1829 Wayne Naylor U.S. EPA, Region III 841 Chestnut Street Mail Code 3HW34 Philadelphia, PA 19107 215-597-7354 Mike Williams U.S. EPA, Region IV 345 Courtland St. N.E. Altanta , GA 30308 404-347-3866 Gerald Phillips U.S. EPA, Region V 230 South Dearborn St. Chicago, IL 60604 312-886-6159 William Rhea (6H-A) U.S. EPA, Region V! 1445 Ross Ave. Dallas, TX 75202-2733 214-655-6757 Faye Rhea U.S. EPA, Region VII 726 Minnesota Avenue Kansas City, KS 66101 913-236-2852 Henry Schroeder U.S. EPA, Region VIII 999 18th St., Suite 500 Denver, CO 80202 303-293-1676 Melanie Field U.S. EPA, Region IX 215 Fremont Street San Francisco, CA 94105 415-974-0748 Joan Cabreza U.S. EPA, Region X 1200 6th Avenue Mail Stop 530 Seattle, WA 98101 206-442-0344 ------- THE FUND BEFORE AND AFTER REGULATIONS Cleanup authorities and uses of the Fund will change after EPA publishes final UST regulations, scheduled to occur in 1988. Differences in the authorities and uses are summarized below: AUTHORITY TO CONDUCT CLEANUPS Before regulations EPA and States with cooperative agreements can use the Trust Fund to conduct cleanups whenever they consider them necessary to protect human health and the environment. Priority must be given to cases in which EPA or the State cannot find a solvent owner or operator who will undertake action promptly. After regulations Because Congress intended tank owners and operators to pay for cleanups, EPA and States will be able to use the Trust Fund to conduct cleanups only under certain circumstances, as follows: If no solvent owner or operator can be found; If the owner or operator has "maintained evidence of financial responsibility," i.e. has proof of some type of insurance coverage, but: o Prompt action is required to protect human health and the environment; o The owngr oir operator refuses to comply with a apahup order; or o Cleanup cogts exceed the required amount of finaritfl3t*a£surance ($1 million in most cases), and Fund expenditures are needed to assure an effective cleanup. If the owner or operator has not "maintained evidence of financial responsibility," and: o Immediate action is required to respond to an imminent and substantial danger to human health or the environment; o The owner or operator is not solvent; or o The required response is relocation of residents, provision of alternative water supplies, or assessment of human exposure to the contaminants. EPA or the State can take action against owners or operators to recover costs. AUTHORITY TO ORDER CLEANUPS Before regulations EPA and States with cooperative agreements can issue and enforce site cleanup orders where they determine that the owner or operator will undertake corrective actions properly and promptly. After regulations The authority will not change; however, all cleanups, whether undertaken by the owner or operator, by EPA, or by a State, will be required to meet EPA or State-authorized corrective action and other tank standards. USES OF THE FUND Before regulations The Trust Fund can be used for the following purposes: To inspect and identify suspected releases; To develop and enforce corrective action orders; and To conduct corrective actions, including the following: o Exposure assessments to determine potential effects; o Cleanup of petroleum releases; o Provision of safe drinking water; and o Relocation of residents, temporarily or permanently. To recover the costs of Fund-financed corrective actions from the responsible owners and operators. After regulations The Fund can be used for the same purposes as before. STATE COST SHARE Before regulations All enforcement and cleanup costs necessary to protect human health and the environment are covered by the Trust Fund. The Trust Fund is intended to be a means to undertake prompt and effective UST petroleum cleanups under certain conditions. After regulations States will be required to pay 10 percent of cleanup costs. *U.S.QPO: 1987-0-716-Q10/70601 ------- |