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  • Crews from Garco Inc. in Asheboro pumped fluids from abandoned underground diesel storage tanks last week near a public well in Liberty. Larry Penkava/The Randolph Guide

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August 30, 2010

State removes old tanks

Larry Penkava Staff Writer

LIBERTY — The state is removing underground storage tanks that could pose a threat to Liberty’s water supply.

Officials from the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) are overseeing the removal along with environmental consultants from URS Corp. Crews from Garco Inc. of Asheboro are doing the actual removal.

The site is at Liberty Tire & Auto on Greensboro Street. A city well is just yards from both underground diesel and gasoline tanks.

Andria Merritt, a hydrogeologist with DENR, said the action is taking place with the authority of a state contract to address the abandoned underground storage tanks. She said the tanks were installed in 1975, a few years before the state tightened underground storage tank rules.

The property is owned by Les Hinshaw, who now leases the site to Liberty Tire & Auto. Hinshaw built a trucking company there and later ran H&M Tire Service.

Merritt said there are six tanks on-site: a waste well tank, two diesel tanks and three gasoline tanks. On Monday, crews dug up the waste well tank and uncovered the two diesel tanks to pump out contents before removal.

Once the tanks are removed, samples of the underlying soil will be sent to a lab for testing. Merritt said from the looks of the soil around the diesel tanks, there appeared to be little contamination. However, results are inconclusive until soil testing is completed.

“Those aren’t as bad as some,” said Merritt. “We pull tanks from 1940.”

She said the concern was the proximity of the tanks to the town well. They’re also considered substandard since they were installed prior to tougher underground storage tank laws.

Merritt said DENR was aware of the site but was unable to extract them without permission from the owner. She credited N.C. Rep. Pat Hurley and Liberty Town Manager Roger Davis with getting access to the tanks through Hinshaw, authorizing DENR to do the work.

The state will pay for the work with the Abandoned Underground Storage Tank Fund. The site qualified for funding because of the threat to the town water supply.

The diesel fuel pumped from the tanks will be recycled and used as lower grade fuel. Any water separated from the oil will be treated and placed in the Asheboro sewer system.

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