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A major gasoline company will face stiff penalties and all gas station operators will face additional controls on petroleum products following the release of roughly 25,000 gallons of gasoline from a northern Baltimore County service station that began in mid January. Maryland’s Department of the Environment (MDE) Secretary and top officials in the state’s Oil Control Program announced the actions at a March 9 press conference near the affected station.
As a result of the incident at the Jacksonville ExxonMobil, MDE is directing all retail gas station owners to verify the proper calibration and operation of their leak detection systems. Additionally, MDE is proposing emergency regulations to further safeguard groundwater supplies across the state that will increase the frequency of leak detection system testing at retail gasoline outlets in high-risk groundwater use areas and tighten inventory controls and reporting of inventory discrepancies.
“MDE is committed to doing all we can, not only to clean up this contamination, but also to prevent such a disaster from occurring again elsewhere in Maryland,” said MDE Secretary Kendl P. Philbrick. “Without a clean water supply, the health and vitality of a community is threatened.”
Emergency Regulations
In January, emergency regulations issued by MDE a year earlier to keep oil products in their place were finalized. They called for the establishment of a certified third party private inspector program. Effective Jan. 16 motor fuel underground storage system owners were required, upon MDE notification, to have their storage system regularly inspected by a certified private inspector. Private inspectors are certified by MDE after they pass an intense training period and a MDE authored test. All actions are reported back to MDE.
Those regulations further required:
- installation of double-walled pipes on all new underground storage systems and built-in sensors to warn of leaks.
- increased groundwater sampling, mandate regular testing of tanks and fittings,
- and define steps that gas station owners and others must take when underground storage
systems are suspected of contaminating groundwater.
The regulations apply in areas where wells are the primary source of household drinking water. MDE has identified the areas and notified affected tank owners or operators.
Additional Measures Mean More Environmental Protection
Since implementation of the original emergency regulations, numerous vapor leaks have been found throughout Maryland. As a result, companies are taking additional proactive measures to change their operations leading to greater protection of the environment. For example, one company that supplies internal tank gauges has modified their tank top adaptor due to identified leaks and is now offering, nationwide, a high quality fitting that prevents vapor leaks from their unit. Due to the regulations, a major convenience store chain has installed vapor control devices that are estimated to prevent the equivalent of 200 gallons of gasoline product per week, per site, from escaping as vapor from their underground storage tanks.
On Aug. 8, 2005 during the performance of sump testing at Parklawn Shell in Rockville to comply with the regulations, a tank tester found liquid gasoline product in the regular unleaded submerged pump sump. Further investigation showed that gasoline had been filling and overflowing the sump for three months, releasing 29,000 gallons into the environment. A recovery system continues to pump groundwater and other contaminants from the site. For two weeks following the leak’s discovery, gas was found in the nearby sanitary sewer and storm drains. It took about three months for 15,000 gallons of the product to be recovered.
Three groundwater monitoring wells were installed at the Winfield BP in Sykesville to meet compliance with the emergency regulations. Sampling of the three wells and the on-site drinking water well last July revealed MTBE, a gasoline additive, at amounts exceeding the state action level in two of them. This discovery allowed sampling of three adjacent properties and other investigation actions in order to prevent the spread of MTBE.
Stringent Sampling and Monitoring
Three groundwater monitoring wells were installed at the Winfield BP in Sykesville to meet compliance with the emergency regulations. Sampling of the three wells and the on-site drinking water well last July revealed MTBE, a gasoline additive, at amounts exceeding the state action level in two of them. This discovery allowed sampling of three adjacent properties and other investigation actions in order to prevent the spread of MTBE.
It was the placement of three monitoring wells required by the emergency regulations that help discover the massive release at the Jacksonville ExxonMobil. These wells showed 15 foot of product in one and 5 feet in another. The wells were used as initial emergency recovery points during all phases of the cleanup.
Department Oversees Massive Recent Recovery
Over the weekend of Feb. 21, MDE began responding to the significant leak at the ExxonMobil gasoline station located at the intersection of Jarrettsville Pike (Rt. 145) and Paper Mill Road (Rt. 146). The department is currently overseeing the recovery of an estimated 25,000-gallon release from a regular unleaded gasoline line at the station.
As of press time, more than 9,900 gallons of unleaded gasoline have been recovered and approximately 1.2 million gallons of contaminated groundwater have been recovered. The equivalent of more than 11,000 gallons of gasoline vapors have been pumped from the ground as well. Recovery operations are on a 24-hour basis and a total of 164 monitoring wells have been installed at the site and surrounding properties. Water samples have been collected at 250 properties and to date gasoline has been detected in drinking water wells of two nearby homes.
Daily Recovery Updates
In addition to the ongoing sampling of existing supply wells, ExxonMobil must also provide MDE with daily status updates on the amount of product recovered and other field activities. ExxonMobil is coordinating their investigation with BP Amoco, a neighboring station that is the source of historical contamination in the area.
In coming weeks, residents seeking more information on this matter will be able to attend meetings hosted by the Greater Jacksonville Association, Inc. The ExxonMobil hotline number for this incident is (877) 346-0302. MDE’s Oil Control Program may also be contacted by dialing (410) 537-3442.
Click here for web updates on the Jacksonville spill along with fact sheets and diagrams on this incident and investigations into other petroleum releases around the state.
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