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EPA Settles Action Against Bibb County Board of Commissioners for Alleged Violations of Resource Conservation and Recovery Act

Release Date: 07/01/2004
Contact Information: Dawn Harris-Young, (404) 562-8421, [email protected]

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the settlement of an administrative enforcement action against Bibb County Board of Commissioners for alleged violations of the Underground Storage Tank (UST) provisions of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). "This action is part of a long term initiative to improve compliance with UST regulations and is consistent with EPA's strategic objective for properly managing petroleum products," stated James D. Giattina, Director, Water Management Division, EPA Region 4. The Administrative Complaint alleged a range of violations including failure to perform release detection for tanks and piping, failure to operate corrosion protection equipment for steel tanks, and inadequate record keeping. Under the terms of the Consent Agreement and Final Order, Bibb County Board of Commissioners paid a civil penalty of $24,000. The Bibb County Board of Commissioners also has agreed to a Supplemental Environmental Project (SEP), which consists of the installation of an automatic tank gauging (ATG) system on two 10,000 gallon gasoline underground storage tanks located at the Bibb County Law Enforcement Center at 668 Oglethorpe Street, Macon, GA. The cost of installing the ATG equipment is estimated at more than $9,900.00. The SEP is beneficial to the environment because it will enable Bibb County to detect and respond to leaks before they impact groundwater and surrounding soils. EPA developed the UST regulations to prevent leaks and spills, and should one occur, promptly abate, and correct the problems caused by them. Leaking USTs can result in serious consequences, such as contamination of public and private drinking water wells and damage to lakes and streams.