Reducing drinking water supply chemical contamination: risks from underground storage tanks

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Environmental Engineering
• Regulatory Science

Background:

• Drinking water safety is threatened by hazardous material releases from underground storage tanks (USTs).
• Over 470,000 UST releases have occurred nationwide, with thousands of new leaks annually and many old leaks unremediated.
• Current regulatory approaches involve rigorous requirements and facility-by-facility inspections.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate an alternative, evidence-based intervention for reducing petroleum releases from commercial USTs in Rhode Island.
• To determine if a new regulatory model can be a cost-effective alternative to traditional inspection programs for USTs.

Main Methods:

• The study focused on commercial facilities in Rhode Island storing petroleum products in underground tanks.
• An alternative regulatory model emphasizing technical assistance tools was implemented and evaluated.
• Compliance performance was measured to compare the new model against traditional methods.

Main Results:

• The alternative model demonstrated measurable improvements in compliance performance for underground storage tanks.
• This approach proved to be a cost-effective adjunct to traditional inspection and enforcement programs.
• Regulatory agencies can potentially reduce inspection frequency for low-risk facilities.

Conclusions:

• The alternative regulatory model effectively enhances UST compliance.
• Technical assistance tools offer a cost-effective supplement to traditional UST oversight.
• This model allows for optimized resource allocation in regulatory oversight without increasing public health risks.