States, Towns Behind on Replacing Underground Tanks.

• Position: Brief Article

Leaking underground storage tanks have created contention among federal regulators, state policymakers and gasoline station owners for a number of years. Federal regulations now penalize owners who failed to upgrade or replace tanks with leakproof models by 1998. But many state and local governments didn't meet the deadline, and it could cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of dollars in fines.

The Environmental Protection Agency notes that roughly half the nation draws its drinking water from public and private wells and aquifers. The old, single-wall underground fuel tanks can leak and contaminate that water supply, requiring costly cleanup.

Several New York state agencies illegally operate 350 tanks, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. The state claims, however, that only 74 of its tanks are out of compliance...