Potential for Fuel Tanks a Concern at Proposed STS and Dunkin Donuts Site

Manchester's on Tuesday night recommended that the proposed future site of a commercial complex in Whiting — a former gas station location — be checked for any remaining fuel containment tanks.

An application for an STS Tire and Auto Center and Dunkin Donuts has been submitted to be constructed at the former Exxon site on the corner of Routes 70 and 539. The commission will make a recommendation that the applicant address whether that any possible tanks remain, said commission secretary Marianne Borthwick, who is also Planning Board coordinator.

"That's our concern — that the remediation was done," she said. "Other than that, there weren't any other environmental issues."

Under the Industrial Site Recovery Act, remediation of the land including the removal of fuel storage tanks is required before it is sold, according to the commission. 

The environmental impact statement submitted by the applicant makes no mention of any tank removal and the commission wants that made clear, said Chairperson Robert Runyon. 

"I'm assuming that Exxon did that, but you would think that [the applicant] would address that," he said. "I don't know if they did or didn't. I think when they abandon it they have to take care of that, but I don't see anything that states that."

There is the possibility that the tanks may not have been removed if the former owner believed that another gas station may purchase the site, Runyon said.

Other environmental factors of the application seem to be in check, according to the commission. 

"They've got stormwater control and there are no wetlands," Runyon said, though member Donald Somerset cautioned that there is a possibility that crews may discover issues when and if the application is approved and construction begins.

"It is an abandoned gas station," he said. "Sometimes when they start to do their work, they find leakage."

The proposed structure requires a land use variance and must be heard by the township's Zoning Board of Adjustment. It is unclear when the application will come before the board for consideration, said secretary Darlene Garcia.