ADEQ Director Owens Announces New Initiative to Help Arizona Schools Clean Up and Prevent Contamination from Leaking Underground Storage Tanks
PHOENIX – Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) Director Steve Owens announced today that ADEQ has launched an innovative initiative to help schools across Arizona clean up contamination from leaking underground storage tanks (USTs) on school property and prevent future leaks from USTs.
“We are launching a unique partnership with schools and school districts throughout the state to clean up contamination on school properties caused by leaking underground storage tanks, as well as help schools prevent future leaks from tanks on their property,”
Director Owens said. “This will help protect the environment, and it will save our schools a lot of money.”
The program is a joint effort by ADEQ’s Children’s Environmental Health Project and the department’s Tank Programs Division. ADEQ will use money from the State
Assurance Fund (SAF), the state UST remediation fund, to clean up contaminated soil and groundwater at school facilities. ADEQ also will provide technical assistance to schools and school districts to ensure that USTs owned and operated by the schools and districts are properly maintained in accordance with the law to prevent future leakage.
ADEQ has identified 17 districts across the state with leaking USTs on school/school district properties. These districts, by county, are:
Coconino: Page Unified
Greenlee: Clifton Unified
Maricopa: Buckeye Union High School, Cave Creek Unified, Glendale Unified High School, Scottsdale Unified, Tempe Unified High School, Tolleson Union High School
Pima: Amphitheater Unified, Marana Unified, Tucson Unified
Pinal: Santa Cruz Valley Union High School
Santa Cruz: Patagonia Unified
Yavapai: Mingus Union High School
Yuma: Crane Elementary, Somerton Elementary, Yuma Elementary.Underground Storage Tanks
ADEQ also has identified 43 school districts and independent schools with USTs, for
which ADEQ will provide technical assistance. The districts, by county, are:
Cochise: Palominas Elementary
Coconino: Flagstaff Unified, Page Unified, Williams Unified
Graham: Safford Unified
Greenlee: Duncan Unified
Maricopa: Agua Fria Union HS, Alhambra Elementary, Avondale Elementary, Cartwright Elementary, Cave Creek Unified, Creighton Elementary, Dysart Unified, Fowler Elementary, Gilbert Unified, Glendale Elementary, Glendale Union High School, Kyrene Elementary, Laveen Elementary, Liberty Elementary, Litchfield Elementary, Madison Elementary, Mesa Unified, Nadaburg Elementary, Paradise Valley Unified,
Peoria Unified, Phoenix Union High School, Roosevelt Elementary, Scottsdale Unified, Tempe School District, Tempe Union High School, Washington Elementary
Pima: Amphitheater Unified, Arizona State School for the Deaf and Blind, Catalina
Foothills Unified, Tucson Unified
Pinal: Apache Junction Unified, Mammoth-San Manuel Unified, Ray Unified, Santa
Cruz Valley High School
Yavapai: Lake Valley Elementary, Mayer Unified, Prescott Unified
