Tanks so much: bulk fuel problems and solutions.

• Author: Lavrakas, Dimitra
• Position: ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES - Sitnasuak Native Corp contracts with Virus Marine LLC

They are a familiar a sight everywhere in Alaska--tank farms--those huge hunks of steel that hold a city's or village's lifeline to heat, light, and transportation. Like its depths, its care and maintenance area mystery to residents, but one that could one day impact their lives.

For instance, take Nome.

In the fall of 2011, 1.6 million gallons of petroleum products that would keep the city running for the winter failed to arrive due to early ice conditions.

In December 2011, Sitnasuak Native Corporation of Nome signed a contract with Virus Marine LLC to deliver 1.5 million gallons of petroleum products to Bonanza Fuel, a subsidiary of Sitnasuak.

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The contract called for the first-ever winter delivery of petroleum products via a double-hulled Ice Classed Russian tanker certified to travel through four feet of ice.

The tanker Renda, under escort by the Unites States Coast Guard ice breaker Healy from Dutch Harbor, brought 1.4 million gallons of gasoline and ultra low sulfur diesel.

But that delivery situation is only one of the hurdles that rural Alaska faces with its fuel supply.

A Very Short Turnaround

The Alaska summer, while long on daylight, is short on time for fuel operations.

Jason Evans, chairman of the board of Sitnasuak Native Corporation, is all too familiar with the scenario.

"The biggest challenge is the short summer season in which most of the required maintenance and repairs need to be completed, and still maintaining an operating tank farm simultaneously," says Evans. "This often requires coordinating summer barge deliveries in between major maintenance projects, such as internal cleaning and repairs, when tanks need to be empty.

"The ground underneath tank farms are often built on permafrost, and with global warming melting the underlying permafrost, the ground is shifting and sinking, requiring unique solutions, including lifting up tanks and leveling the tanks themselves, similar to a house that needs to be re-leveled every couple of years. In addition, tanks farms are often near the ocean and salty air, which accelerates corrosion of pipelines and tank exteriors, which require constant repairs."

Aging Tanks and What to Do with Them

Custodians of tank farms also face the problem of corrosion, and Evans says that has become a significant factor.

"The recent federal mandate requiring the use of ultra low sulfur diesel has actually accelerated the rate of corrosion in steel pipelines and tank interiors...