SITE INFORMATION AND CORRESPONDENCE

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January 26, 2004 Page 2 California Code of Regulations, Title 23 section 2720 provides, in pertinent part, as follows: "Responsible party"means one or more of the following: (1)Any person who owns or operates an underground storage tank used for the storage of any hazardous substance; (2) In the case of any underground storage tank no longer in use, any person who owned or operated the underground storage tank immediately before the discontinuation of its use; (3)Any owner of property where an unauthorized release of a hazardous substance from an underground storage tank has occurred; and (4)Any person who had or has control over a underground storage tank at the time of or following an unauthorized release of a hazardous substance. Thus, of relevance in this particular matter is that, a"responsible party" includes any person who owned or operated any underground storage tank no longer in use, immediately before the discontinuation of its use (item(2) above), any owner of property where an unauthorized release of a hazardous substance from an underground storage tank has occurred (item(3) above), and any person who had or has control over a underground storage tank at the time of or following an unauthorized release of a hazardous substance (item(4) above).. Cal..Code Regs., tit. 23, § 2720. Accordingly,because the UST was empty and no longer being used at the time the Keirs purchased the property, and because the Keirs never used or operated the UST, the previous owners and/or operators are the "responsible parties"who owned and/or operated the UST immediately before the discontinuation of its use. In addition,because the removal of the empty UST could not have caused an unauthorized release of a hazardous substance,the previous owners and/or operators are the"responsible parties" who had control over the UST at the time of and following an unauthorized release of a hazardous substance (assuming an unauthorized release of a hazardous substance has in fact occurred). The current owners, who have apparently already been designated as secondary responsible parties are the "responsible parties"who own the property where an unauthorized release of a hazardous substance from a UST has occurred(assuming an unauthorized release of a hazardous substance has in fact occurred). The only portion of the regulation which defines a"responsible party"that is arguably applicable to the Keirs is as persons who had control over the UST following an unauthorized release of a hazardous substance. However, under the circumstances present here, the decisions of the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) indicate that it would be inequitable to hold the Keirs responsible.