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January 15, 2002
Contact:
Gregory Olmsted, Supervisor
Underground Storage Tank Section
In December the Department of Health issued a field
citation to US Restaurant Properties of Dallas, Texas, for failing to
submit notification forms notifying DOH that it had acquired ownership
of underground storage tanks at 27 ARCO Service Stations as required by
the state’s underground storage tank rules. The combined penalty
issued for the 27 stations is $15,150.
The Department of Health also cited 8 petroleum
facilities on Oahu since November 2001. These facilities were issued
field citations with penalties that ranged from $100 to $2,100.
Two ARCO stations received the highest penalties.
The ARCO station at 2314 N. School Street was fined a total of $2,100
for failing to monitor tanks and piping for releases of gasoline,
failing to conduct annual maintenance on their release detection
equipment, and failing to ensure that the leak detection equipment on
piping worked. The ARCO station at 1701 Dillingham Blvd. received a
citation for $900, also for failing to properly maintain and operate
release detection equipment on their tanks and piping.
Also cited were Beretania and Ward Union 76, $600;
Dollar Rent-A-Car, $500; Koko’s Island Chevron, $450; Moanalua
Chevron Service, $450; Carl’s Junior 76, $150; and Tanabe’s
Service Inc., $100 for violations of Hawaii’s UST rules.
"We are inspecting every regulated UST facility in
Hawaii," said Greg Olmsted, UST Section Supervisor. "That’s 2200
tanks at 1100 facilities. DOH inspectors ensure that owners and
operators are maintaining spill, overfill and corrosion protection, are
monitoring their tanks and piping for releases of fuel, and are
complying with pollution insurance requirements to pay for cleanup
activities in the event of a release."
If the facilities do not come into compliance, sign
a settlement agreement, and pay the field citation penalties within 30
days, they are subject to formal enforcement action that carries
penalties of up to $25,000 per violation per tank per day.
"Field citations give owners and operators an
excellent opportunity to resolve the violations quickly and easily,"
said Bob Caplan, the Enforcement Coordinator for the DOH’s UST
program. "It enables them to avoid costly and protracted
litigation."
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