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Michigan Company Settles Underground Storage Tank Violations at West Virginia Facility

Release Date: 01/04/2008
Contact Information: Donna Heron 215-814-5113 / heron.donna@epa.gov

PHILADELPHIA (January 4, 2008) – Universal Forest Products Eastern Division, Inc., a company based in Grand Rapids, Mich., has settled alleged violations of underground fuel storage regulations at the company’s facility in Ranson, W. Va., the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today.

Universal agreed to pay a civil penalty of $17,500 to settle alleged violations of federal regulations designed to prevent, detect, and control fuel leaks from underground storage tanks (USTs). EPA cited the company for failing to provide adequate continuous leak detection for the underground piping connected to its 10,000-gallon underground storage tank containing diesel fuel, failing to provide corrosion protection for metal piping connections, and failing to timely perform testing of the cathodic protection system for the underground tank itself.

As part of the settlement, the company neither admitted nor denied liability for the alleged violations. The settlement reflects the company’s cooperation with EPA’s investigation, and good faith compliance efforts.

With millions of gallons of gasoline, oil and other petroleum products stored in USTs throughout the U.S., leaking tanks are a major source of soil and groundwater contamination. EPA and state UST regulations are designed to reduce the risk of underground leaks and to promptly detect and properly address leaks which do occur, thus minimizing cnvironmental harm and avoiding the costs of major cleanups.

For more information on EPA’s Underground Storage Tank program, visit: https://www.epa.gov/swerust1.