The cost of leaky petroleum storage tanks
One of the most common sources of groundwater contamination is leaking underground storage tanks (UST) like those used by convenience stores and gas stations. From the AEA blog:
About 60 percent of all underground storage tanks (USTs) have experienced at least one leak and that remediation of the approximately 528,000 total leaks costs over $1 billion a year in state and federal funds.
Chris Fleisher, The American Economic Association, January 25, 2021 – “Danger Lurks Below”
The EPA runs the UST Program with a lot of detailed information about the problem, and how operators should prevent leaks and remediate them.