WORK PLANS - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Ms. Linda Turkatte LTR*003/TXTKEH March 25 , 1993 Page: 4 contributing to a contamination of a regulated substance (U.S. v. Price 523 F. Supp. 1055 (D.N.J. 1981) . Legislative history of RCRA indicates that an owner or operator "contributing to" disposal as a group with certain liabilities under the statute should be interpreted broadly, not in a restrictive fashion and that past actions which could be presently contributing to the contamination are within the ambit of the statute. (Id. ) The sale of property does not relieve a previous property owner or operator of its accountability under the RCRA statute. Actions and inactions of the previous owners and operators are the primary cause of the hazardous situation that exists. Thus the current owners have a duty to prevent continued contamination, it would be inequiabZe to require them to bear the entire burden of a situation that was caused by others . (U.S. v. Price at p. 1072) Society' s interest in determining improper disposal of hazardous wastes and in alleviating serious hazards as quickly as possible mandates that those responsible for the contamination not be able to shirk their statutory responsibilities by simply selling the property (or terminating leases) where the contamination exists. Id. In the case of 1702 Jackson Street, Escalon, Union Oil had a property interest as a lessee and though the property was never "sold" the lease was surrendered. The act of terminating a lease interest in the property should not release the operator, Union Oil, from responsibility to a governmental agency such as yourselves any more than if Union Oil had owned the property and sold it. During its lease of the property, Union Oil had as much responsibility for the operation of the USTs than if it had owned the property. Thus , application of RCRA requires Union Oil Company of California to be named as an additional responsible party. ( 2) Federal Petroleum Trust Fund. The LOP contract between the State Water Resources Control Board (State Board) and County refer to the "Federal Petroleum Trust Fund. " The federal law does not include such a reference . However, our legal research did reference a "Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund, " 42 USCA section 6691b (h) (7) . The United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) may provide monies to a state from this "fund" for "reasonable costs of the State' s actions under the cooperative agreement. "