Spill shows risks of oil tank removal
Pipes must be cut and removed
HACKENSACK — Hundreds of gallons of home heating oil were mistakenly pumped into a city basement last Monday, causing a mess for the homeowner and underscoring the importance of taking every step when removing a residential oil tank.
An old oil tank had been removed from the home on Maple Hill Drive and the pipes were cut, but the fill port that had led to the tank had been left intact, and an automatic delivery service had not been canceled.
“The oil company showed up that day, the pipes were where they should be, so they hooked up and started pumping oil,” Capt. Steve Rocco of the Hackensack Fire Department said.
Rocco said at least a couple of hundred gallons of oil ended up in the basement but did not affect the properties on either side of the single-family home. The Bergen County Hazardous Materials Unit and a professional cleanup contractor responded to assess the extent of the spill, prevent its spread and minimize the environmental impact.
Efforts to reach the homeowner were unsuccessful.
John Rango, the managing partner at GeoScan and NJ Oil Tank Sweep, a Hawthorne-based company that specializes in locating and removing oil tanks, said many homeowners are opting to remove oil tanks, often when they are looking to sell their home. Many mortgage and insurance companies now require it, he said.
There are tens of thousands of tanks buried in yards across the state, especially in North Jersey’s older neighborhoods. Most of the tanks are decades old and over time they can corrode and leak.
Incidents like the one in Hackensack are “not commonplace, but it does happen unfortunately,” he said. “It’s really on the contractor. They should remove the piping, but there’s no sanction or
law requiring you to do it.”
The extent and cost of a cleanup depends on the severity of the spill, and are typically not covered by insurance, Rango said. “The worst case I’ve ever seen was a house on one of the islands on Lake Hopatcong — the same thing happened,” he said. “Oil was delivered and pumped into the basement. They tried to remediate, but eventually, they had to condemn the house. The people were just like ‘OK, we’re moving on.’ ”
The incident highlights the downside of auto-renewing subscriptions and deliveries — if something changes, it’s on the customer to cancel the service.
“If you’re going to remove a tank, do your due diligence. Have a contractor remove the piping and make sure you cancel the delivery,” Rango said. “It really could happen to anyone, but it’s a very unfortunate circumstance.”