The Underground Storage Tank Market: Its Current Status and Future Challenges.

• Author: Foster, Barbara

Environmental Information Ltd., 4801 West 81st St., Suite 119, Minneapolis, Minn. 55437, (612) 831-2473. 188 pages; $25 government rate, $95 others.

The good news is that almost 44,000 leaking underground petroleum storage tanks in this country have been cleaned up. The bad news is that that number is less than 10 percent of the estimated cleanups needed.

More bad news: Although states collect almost $1 billion a year to help businesses pay cleanup costs, it is only a fraction of what is needed. The deck is stacked against owners of individual tanks and small gas stations who have trouble qualifying for cleanup funds. Five thousand new leaking underground tanks are reported each month, and delays in getting them cleaned up only increase the cost.

In order to assess the market potential for cleanup contractors, Environmental Information, a scientific publishing group, undertook a 50-state survey that covers regulatory requirements, an inventory of underground storage tanks, cleanup standards (toxics and approved technologies), the status of state financial assurance funds and the criteria for being eligible for them, other funding programs that cover cleanup of underground storage tanks, and requirements for contractors.

The writers found that the nationwide average for remediation is $100,000; banks are still reluctant...