ELR Citation: ELR 20569
No(s). 01-1665 (4th Cir. Mar 19, 2002)

The court affirms a district court decision entitling a state to recover from a petroleum producer and underground storage tank (UST) leasing company the costs of providing bottled water and filtration systems to homeowners whose well water was contaminated by benzene from leaking USTs. The court first holds that the state was authorized under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act to take the corrective action of providing the homeowners with alternate water because prompt action was necessary to protect human health and the environment. The court also holds that the alternate water supply costs were properly classified as compensation to third parties for property damage, which is subject to a $100,000 deductible under the state's commercial leaking UST cleanup, and were not for the cleanup of environmental damage, which is subject to a $20,000 deductible that the petroleum producer had already met. Therefore, instead of having to seek compensation from the UST fund, the state is able to collecct the alternate water costs from the petroleum producer.

The full text of this decision is available from ELR (9 pp., ELR Order No. L-480).

Counsel for Plaintiff
James Pittman
Department of Justice
Justice Bldg., Box 629, Raleigh NC 27602
(919) 733-3377

Counsel for Defendants
John A. Hodge
Haynsworth, Sinkler & Boyd
1426 Main St., Ste. 1200, Columbia SC 29111
(803) 779-3080