America's LargestNew Maine Law Governing Heating Oil Tanks Takes Effect This Week
An old, leaky above ground tank. (image: maine.gov)
Last year, Maine’s legislature passed a law requiring residents who live within 1,000 feet of a community drinking well to use a double-walled tank when installing a new or replacing an old home heating oil system. The new law will take effect on July 1st. The reasoning behind the rule, proponents say, is to save Maine’s taxpayers’ money. Officials say that the Maine Department of Environmental Protections responds to one call related to a heating oil spill a day. The physical cost of cleaning up these spills totals about $2 million annually. This does not take into consideration the long-lasting effects if heating oil seeps into a public water supply.
Maine environmental officials say the worst kind of heating oil spills are “the long, slow ones” that go undetected for some time, resulting in a large amount of ground contamination.
But while this new law may save taxpayers money, it will increase the amount of money spent by affected home heating oil consumers, according to the Daily News:
Homeowners affected by the new law will have several choices in tank designs, all of which are likely to cost more than traditional tanks.
The first, less expensive option — coming in at around $200 more than a standard tank, according to McCaskill — are known as double-bottomed tanks and feature an enclosed reservoir at the bottom of the tank to capture any spillage. The tanks have a float mechanism to allow for visual inspection.
Tanks that are double-walled all the way around can set a homeowner back, on average, an additional $1,000 or more, but these tanks are more protective of the environment. For outdoor tanks, the DEP recommends double-walled, reinforced fiberglass tanks.
Finally, homeowners with outdoor tanks also can invest in a containment system that resembles a small shed for a tank. Such an enclosure captures spills while protecting the tank from the elements.
Homeowners who live outside the perimeter of a community water source, also called a “designated wellhead protected zone”, are exempt from the new law. So are home heating oil users who use their own well for water. And the new law also doesn’t mandate that home owners get new tanks immediately.
The new law, however, will affect plenty of home heating oil users. There are over 400 community water systems in Maine; an estimated 80 percent of Maine homes are kept warm by home heating oil, the highest in the nation.
