Leaking fuel tanks

Saturday, Aug. 16, 2008 | 2:06 a.m.

Ever since its bumbling response to the deadly destruction in New Orleans and Mississippi’s Gulf Coast wrought by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the Federal Emergency Management Agency has made itself an easy target of criticism. It has become an example of how not to run a federal agency.

That reputation was cemented with a story Tuesday by the Associated Press saying that FEMA has known since the 1990s that hundreds of defunct fuel tanks under its supervision could be leaking their hazardous contents into soil and ground water. Drinking water contaminated by fuel can lead to higher risks of cancer, kidney damage and nervous system disorders.

The tanks, many of which were inherited from other federal agencies, date to the Cold War era of the 1960s and were used to fuel generators that could have been used by radio stations for emergency broadcasts. The 238 tanks FEMA plans to inspect are scattered throughout 48 states, including sites in Northern Nevada.

“It has taken far too long for FEMA to address this nationwide problem, but I’m pleased that the agency will finally inspect the fuel tanks in Reno, Fallon and Winnemucca,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., told the Sun in a statement. “I will continue to closely watch this situation to ensure that FEMA takes all measures necessary to protect the health and safety of those communities.”

It is perplexing that it has taken so long for FEMA to begin inspecting those tanks, especially since there is evidence through Senate testimony that the agency knew about the potential leaks at least as far back as 1992. The urgency of inspecting the tanks that stored as many as 5,000 gallons each should have become apparent years ago because the tanks were built with steel, a metal known to rust over time.

Now that the inspections are taking place, we trust FEMA will have the common sense to alert local and state health departments as soon as it uncovers any evidence of soil or ground-water contamination. It will be inexcusable if we find out that someone became ill because of a fuel tank leak that should have been repaired years ago.