The Robinson family’s water supply at their Maple Drive home in Independence Township has been contaminated with gasoline for the past year.
And, they’re not alone.
According to the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), the Clarkston area has dozens of ‘open,? unaddressed contamination cases at local gas stations and businesses,
‘Whoever owned the tank is responsible for the pollution,? MDEQ spokesman Brad Wurfel said. ‘Many of those sites are in enforcement now.”
Independence Township Supervisor Pat Kittle said the number of leaks in Clarkston is disturbing. He is also working on a solution for the 25 Maple Road single family homes, and one apartment complex, whose residents were told by management not to drink the water, instead buying it themselves.
Kittle said installing a water main to Maple Drive will cost over $200,000, plus another $1,700 in tap in fees for each of the 25 homes, and more for the apartment complex.
“We are trying to reach to homeowners to see if, rather than on the state, they would they be interested in creating a Special Assessment District. This means the township would pay to get water to Maple Road residents, and over 15 and 20 years, homeowners would reimburse us,? he said.
Spillages, called plumes, travel over time, seeping deeper and moving to different areas, Wurfel said.
‘Sometimes places changed hands and the plume comes with property. We are dealing with similar situations everywhere,” he added.
State and county agencies dig test wells to determine size, intensity and spread of spills, as well as sample soil and water.
The Oakland County Health Department has the responsibility of monitoring gas stations, he said.
‘Leaking underground storage tanks add complexity to underground drinking water issues,” Wurfel said. “In areas where no one is using water, it is not a great problem. But, we have many sites where people are using drinking water, which is worse.”
Michigan ranks in the top five states for leaking underground tanks, with over 8,500 known leaks at 6,700 sites including gas stations, community government buildings, schools, and businesses, according to Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.
Half of the sites are ‘orphaned,? with no responsible party but the state. Cleanup costs for known leaks are an estimated $1 billion.
According to state law, gas stations self report suspected leaks. They are also required to keep records, which are used to determine leaks by comparing gas purchased to what is sold. State and federal laws also require systems to prevent and detect leaks.
The Michigan Underground Storage Tank Financial Assurance Fund (MUSTFA), an environmental protection regulatory fee created in 1988, collected $625 million before 1995, as well as $215 million in bonds issued in 1993.
Since then, about 21,800 sites in Michigan had confirmed petroleum leaks, and 13,000 sites were cleaned up. From 2003 to 2014, 2,700 sites were cleaned.
On average, it costs $400,000 to remediate a contaminated property.
‘It’s expensive to meet clean-up standards,? Wurfel said.
Many of the confirmed leaks in the Clarkston area are at current or former gas stations, but some are located at government and county owned properties such as fire departments and schools. Many of these sites continue to operate underground tanks past their lifespan or are not monitored.
The state’s website lists Leaking Underground Storage Tanks, LUST, throughout the state.
Reports are closed when property owner clean the site, or a restricted land use is placed on the property.
In north Oakland County, the Clarkston area has 16 open and 10 closed cases; Ortonville, nine open, two closed; Waterford, 10 open, 11 closed; Groveland one open; Oxford, seven open, 10 closed; Holly, 10 open, 10 closed; and Lake Orion, 10 open, seven closed.
DEQ said the contamination at the Robinsons was caused by leaky underground tanks at a gas station on Dixie Highway, now a Citgo.
Every 20 days the state delivers eight cases of bottled water. Although the state says it’s OK to shower, Robinson said they use water they gather from friends. Clarkston Attorney Jon Gaskell contacted Robinson and recommended an environmental attorney.
Citgo Petroleum Corporation said Citgo stations are locally owned and independently operated and are responsible to all federal, state, and local authorities to operate and maintain the facility in compliance with all regulatory mandates.
“We know that incidents at the local stations reflect on Citgo, and we depend upon the governing agencies to police and enforce compliance with their regulations,” according to a corporate statement. “We take situations like this one very seriously and expect that the responsible parties and all governing agencies involved will work together to resolve this situation.?

Open cases of leaking tanks

BP, formerly Clarkston Shell, 7251 N. Main Road, discovered April 1990 and January 1992; substance, used oil and an unlisted substance. Six tanks, capacity up to 8,000 gallons, storing gas, diesel, and used oil, were removed. Current owner is Auto City Services, Fenton.
Sunoco, 7650 Ortonville Road, discovered January 2015; substance, used oil. Three 10,000 gallon tanks and a 6,000-gallon gas tank, installed in 1973 and 1983, are still in use. One 500 gallon used-oil tank listed as temporarily out of use. Current owner is GEB Clarkston Inc.
Speedway, 6594 Dixie Highway, discovered August 1997. Three 12,000 gallon gasoline tanks removed. Current owner, Speedway LLC, Ohio.
Clarkston Marathon, 8500 Dixie Highway, discovered February and March 1994. Four tanks, up to 6,000 gallon capacity storing gas, diesel, kerosene were removed. Current owner, Auto City Service Inc, Fenton.
BP, 6756 Dixie, formerly Clarkston Marathon, discovered, 1991, 1992, and 2005. Substance released, gasoline and used oil. Nine tanks, up to 12,000 gallons storing gas and used oil, were removed. Two reports are closed, and one remains open. Current owner, Clarkston Dix Properties LLC.
Former Village Muffler and Brake, 148 N. Main, discovered, December 1991. Four tanks, up to 8,000 gallon capacity carrying gas and petroleum, were removed. Current owner, G.L Investments, Pontiac.
Clarkston Citgo, 6550 Dixie Highway, discovered, April 2002 and February 2003. Four 8,000-gallon gasoline tanks were removed. Current owner, Mt. Clark.
Citgo, 5465 Sashabaw Road, discovered, April 1991. Three tanks, two 10,000-gallon and one 12,000-gallon storing gas, were removed. Current owner, Dandy Oil, Detroit.
Texaco, 7320 Ortonville Road, site demolished, discovered May 1998. Current owner, Texaco Environmental Services.
Businesses other than gas stations with leaky tanks include:
Clarkston Junior High School, discovered August 2007; substance listed as unknown, but tanks carried gasoline, diesel, and used oil. Four tanks, two with 12,000 gallons capacities, two with 500, were removed.
Allied Construction, 4941 White Lake Road, discovered August 2005; substance released, diesel and gasoline. Two 550-gallon tanks removed.
Biancas, 7880 Andersonville Road, discovered September 1997; substance released, gasoline. One 4,000-gallon tank removed.
Precision Pipe and Supply Company, 4950 White Lake Road, discovered January 1991. Five tanks, up to 10,000 gallons, carrying gas, diesel, and used oil, were removed.
Sashabaw Marketplace, LLC, 5748 Clarkston Road, discovered December 2004; substance, mixed. Five tanks, up to 8,000 gallons, removed. Current owner, Clarkston Square LLC, Birmingham.
For more information, check www.deq.state.mi.us.