Introduction

A case study on the closure and restoration of a gas station in New Jersey is presented here. This gas station is located in a protected area under the NJ Pinelands Protection Act where the underlying groundwater is classified as Class 1-PL (Pinelands Preservation Area.) 

The contaminated site was an abandoned gas station located in Mays Landing, NJ, that operated a gas station with two delivery pumps. The previous owner of the gas station was compelled to abandon the property circa 1990 with several USTs still on site due to economic pressure.

Tank Details

2 of the tanks were found to be corroded posing a threat to the groundwater and even in the case where the tanks are not corroded, accidental spills can eventually seep into the groundwater posing a risk to the groundwater under these tanks. The risks increase over time as the size of the plume might expand over the years. One of the reasons an oil contaminated property is considered to be a derivative product where the value of the slides down significantly and enters into distressed price territory.

Median costs of cleanup alternatives

The table below presents industry estimates according to the USEPA for various cleanup alternatives per tank.

The cost of cleanup, including accomplishing the unrestricted use response action outcome (UURAO), at this site that included all of the six tanks was less than $200,000.00 or less than $33,000.00 per tank, which is much better than the industry estimates.

Summary

The site was a former gas station that was not dispensing since 1989, however, since at least two of the gas tanks were corroded may have contributed to the contamination in and around the site. The site received a UURAO at less than $33,000.00 per tank.