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Summit County, Ohio, Gas Stations Fail Quality Tests

Posted on: Friday, 16 September 2005, 18:00 CDT

Sep. 16--Three months of fuel quality testing at Summit County gas stations has revealed dozens of violations, including water and sediment in storage tanks, and gasoline that failed to meet octane standards.

No citations have been issued against any stations in this first round of testing, as businesses are being given the chance to correct their violations before facing penalties.

The Summit County Council approved legislation in October to allow for fuel quality testing in the county. Ohio is one of just four states that don't require testing. Because Summit is a charter county with home rule, the council was able to enact a testing law without its being a state requirement.

Testing began on June 15 after several months of training for city and county inspectors. After three months, inspectors checked 230 gas stations and found 502 violations. Of the stations that were inspected, 88 were in Akron and 142 were in other parts of the county.

The majority of the infractions -- 412 -- were for debris on the spill rims of underground storage tanks for gasoline and diesel fuel.

"There were frogs, cigarette butts, rags, other debris, leaves, water and gasoline," said Helen Fusco, director of administration for the county fiscal office.

Although spill rim violations can lead to contaminated fuel, they are not a violation for which a station owner can be cited under the county's laws.

More substantive violations include three instances of gasoline that was not the octane it was advertised, 26 cases of water in underground tanks, and 35 instances in which fuel was missing its octane labeling.

Water in underground tanks can lead to the growth of microbes in the fuel, which can cause engine damage.

No tests revealed sediment in any fuel. However, sediment was discovered 18 times in underground storage tanks. Sediment in storage tanks alone is not a violation, as long as it does not pass through to the pump.

Lynn Vallee, director of services for the fiscal office, said filters can stop the sediment from reaching a vehicle's gas tank.

Vallee said a second round of testing will begin soon. So far, gas station owners have been cooperative and eager to fix their violations, he said. Plans call for stations to be tested three times a year.

Penalties for violations can range from a citation to fines to a stop-sale order on pumps.

Fusco said the testing is aimed at protecting the consumer, not hurting small businesses. "We don't want to put anyone out of business," she said. "A lot of the station owners didn't even know they had to look at this."

Mike Toth, senior vice president of Holland Oil, which operates 44 Citgo stations in Summit County, said the testing was conducted in a routine manner.

He said his stations were notified of some minor problems at a few sites, all of which were able to be corrected immediately.

Toth was instrumental in representing the concerns of station owners before the County Council.

"We believe the quality of fuel provided at most retail markets is high, and there are many safeguards in the existing systems to maintain that quality. This provides an additional check and balance for the benefit of the consumer," he said.

Eventually, the fiscal office hopes to post the testing results on its Web site, Fusco said.

The Ohio Auditors Association is lobbying for fuel quality testing to become state law.

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To see more of the Akron Beacon Journal, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.ohio.com.

Copyright (c) 2005, The Akron Beacon Journal, Ohio

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Source: Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio)

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