New City Council bill would prevent contamination by storage tanks
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dec. 6, 2021
Expanded protection of drinking water proposed
New City Council bill would prevent contamination by storage tanks
HONOLULU, HAWAI‘I — Working to stop a repeat of devastating residential drinking water contamination, Honolulu City Council Chair Tommy Waters and Councilmember Radiant Cordero have introduced a bill to protect O‘ahu water sources from leaking underground storage tanks, such as at Red Hill.
Bill 48 would require any operator of underground storage tanks with a capacity of 100,000 gallons or more, to obtain a permit from the City. It further stipulates that no permit will be granted unless the applicant proves that the tank or tank system will not leak regulated substances into the environment.
“Ola i ka wai, water is life. It is a basic truth of Hawaiian culture and for all people of the world,” said Chair Waters. “Without clean water, life cannot be sustained. This contamination, which could have been foreseen, is especially harmful and must be made right, which is why we are taking action.”
“The recent contamination of water at Navy housing has highlighted a drastic need for more oversight on underground storage facilities,” said Councilmember Cordero. “It is essential we do our part as the Honolulu City Council to protect and preserve our groundwater supplies so every individual on O‘ahu is ensured this fundamental right.”
MEDIAAVAILABILITY: Chair Waters and Councilmember Cordero will be available for Zoom interviews via the media contact below.
Further detail:
Bill 48 was co-introduced Dec. 1. It cites the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s finding that the Southern Basal Aquifer, stretching from Schofield Barracks through urban Honolulu, is a
“principal source of drinking water” for the island of O‘ahu and that “if contaminated, would create a significant hazard to public health.”
The state Department of Health has determined that no underground storage tank or underground storage tank system in Hawai‘i poses as great a threat to groundwater as does the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility and indeed, the U.S. Navy confirmed Dec. 2 through its testing that the present contamination of water in homes and facilities is from its own Red Hill system that has a years-long history of leakage.
Federal law gives the City legal authority to enact underground storage tank requirements with which all federal agencies must comply. Likewise, state law also allows the City to enact ordinances and rules governing matters relating to underground storage tanks, as long as they are consistent with state Department of Health rules.
The bill states that no underground storage tank or tank system containing a large volume of petroleum product should be allowed to operate above a sole-source aquifer on O‘ahu unless it can be established that no tanks will release any regulated substance during its operating life.
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