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Tiverton conservation panel urges study of buried heating-oil tanks; council agrees to advertise recycling-committee ordinance changes
Summary
The Conservation Commission described risks from aging buried oil tanks and urged the town to pursue an ordinance to prohibit deliveries and require retirement; the council asked staff for further research and voted to advertise changes to the recycling committee ordinance.
Tom Ramitowski of the Tiverton Conservation Commission told the Town Council the commission views decades-old buried steel home heating-oil tanks as “ticking time bombs” for groundwater supplies and urged the council to consider local regulation to prohibit deliveries to those tanks and require proper retirement.
Ramitoswski described outreach the commission conducted to local oil suppliers, reporting about a 50% response rate and at least one supplier who admitted active deliveries to buried tanks. He cited a recent North Attleboro cleanup where a failed buried tank allegedly led to roughly $400,000 in remediation costs for homeowners and said Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) does not regulate residential underground fuel tanks smaller than 1,100 gallons.
Council members and staff discussed the town's partial records. A councilor who described past service as fire marshal said the fire department maintained older paper records and that tanks discovered during real-estate transactions have been subject to removal and inspection. The council heard that DEM’s database of registered tanks is incomplete for residential tanks under 1,100 gallons and that closure options include removal or approved in-place closure following DEM guidance.
Several councilors and the solicitor cautioned about legal risk. One councilor suggested the conservation commission should first coordinate with DEM to identify regulatory gaps and requested the fire department supply its archival records for cross-checking. Ramitowski asked the council to ask the town solicitor to draft an ordinance that would prohibit deliveries to buried tanks and require retirement; councilors agreed to pursue further research rather than immediately adopt a local ban.
On a related matter, Ramitowski briefed the council on the status of the town landfill and recycling committee, noting confusion in town records about whether separate landfill and recycling committees exist and that the combined committee appears to be underpopulated. The conservation commission recommended dissolving the inactive separate committee and folding responsibilities into conservation or another town office, while maintaining a required recycling coordinator role (potentially assigned to DPW).
Councilors voted to schedule and advertise a public hearing for possible amendments to Tiverton Code of Ordinances chapter 66, section 66-102 (recycling committee). The motion to advertise was moved, seconded and approved with no recorded opposition.
Council discussion identified next steps: (1) conservation commission to coordinate with DEM and compile a better inventory by cross-referencing supplier responses with fire-department records; (2) staff to provide legal analysis on the town’s authority to restrict deliveries and to estimate costs and options for tank retirement or closure, and (3) council to consider ordinance language and a public hearing for revisions to the recycling committee ordinance.
