BE>* In a message to All on 12-07-96, JOE PHILLIPS said the following:
BE>JP> I worked for a local hardware store for about 9 months before it
  >closed.  One
  >JP> of the thing we did was pump K-1 Kerosene for heating.  A lot of
  >kerosene got
  >JP> spilled over the years, and I am sure there is still some in the
  >ground.  My
BE>  But a major leak would not have gone undetected for as long as would
  >  be the case with an underground tank.
Old tanks... maybe.  But new tanks (put in after 1988) have to have
overfill protection, corrosion protection, and leak detection built in.
All the older, pre-1988 tanks have to be upgraded or rebuilt to these
new standards by December 31, 1998, or must be aken out of service and
removed.
If you're suspicious about what's in the ground from old spills, take a
soil sample and have it analyzed for BTEX (benzene, toluene,
ethylbenzene, and xylene), and TPH (total petroleum hydrocarbons,
preferably using EPA's modified Method 418).  If BTEX is less than 400
ppm, with less than 25% of the result being due to benzene, and TPH less
than 1000 ppm, the soil is generally safe to leave in place.  If it's
above either of these levels, it's time to start digging.
Tom
 * QMPro 1.53 * "Bother" said Pooh as Satan pointed out the fine print
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