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,.� •. :�.4, ,tt'q� M+S•.i+-.4�,.,�;�;,•y.�yr w �.;ri 1. fY`F- [ Questioned cit wells are safe By.JULIE SCHMiT News-Sentinel staff writer Two city wells shut down Oct. 30 due to possible petroleum con- tamination were put back on line Friday after tests revealed they were clean., The wells, located between Church and School streets, were shut down and tested after it was discovered a nearby underground fuel tank had leaked and contaminated the surrounding soil,said Fran Forkas,city water and waste water superintendent. 1 Contamination can spread from the soil into the groundwater '. . v ... .i' .{ ;., a ► r A H;', table and from there into the well,Forkas said. The test results were available Friday and no trace of petroleum ; hydrocarbons were discovered. "It was good news for us,"he said. The wells, No. 2 and No. 3, were flushed and put back into nor- mal operation. 'Water customers should snot have noticed any disruption in water service since the city's 17 wells feed into a cen- tral distribution location,he said. One well was about 250 feet from the contaminated site and the other was about 2,000 feet away,Forkas said. The tank, which had been located beneath a gas station at the corner of Elm and School streets, had not been used since the sta- tion closed about 10 years ago. It was removed a mapth ago i because a new state law requires that all tanks be tested for leeks. Since the tank was not being used, the owner opted to remove it, . , :- which is allowed, and that is when the soil contamination was dis- covered, said Laurie Cotulla of the San Joaquin County Health District. She said the soil contamination had spread at least 20 feet under- s * ; ATF _kv f, [=,r ;t ground, but officials have not yet determined if it has spread into the groundwater table which is 42 feet below the ground surface. k Even if the groundwater has been contaminated,Forkas said the wells are safe because they are sealed for the first 100 feet and draw water only from lower stratas in the groundwater table. Most contamination stays in the upper stratas of the table, he said.City wells are routinely tested. The owner of the lot where the tank was located is responsible y for cleaning the contaminated site according to the 1986 law requir- ing the checks on underground tanks. Excavation is the typical clean-up procedure,Cotulla said, r I