One example is Norm's Service station in Julian, which was purchased by the owner of [image-nocss] two other gas stations in Santa Ysabel and Ramona who will do the necessary upgrades to the Julian station's fueling system. The original owners said the upgrades were too expensive to allow it to remain a viable business, according to a report in the Union Tribune.
Owners Cheryl and Jennifer DeWitt said the upgrades would cost them as much as $100,000 over the next few years, a figure the small business couldn't absorb. In the town's newspaper, the Julian News, the DeWitts thanked the residents for their concern in a letter.
"With the possibility of losing our only gas station, we all realized the severity of a disastrous situation," they wrote. "We all remember the fires." The mountain town was evacuated during the 2003 and 2007 forest fires, and Norm's stayed open, using a generator to power the pumps, providing residents with the necessary fuel to evacuate.
While thousands of gas stations have already complied with the new pump regulations and those that have not are expected to be given additional time, California lawmakers also are considering emergency legislation that would provide grant money to help ease the financial pain of a retrofit that can cost $11,000 per pump.
"I think there are some people who probably waited because it was always difficult to do the financing and never expected the economic calamity that we have now," said state Assemblyman Ira Ruskin, according to the AP report. "We don't want these stations to close simply because they can't get credit in these tough times."
Ruskin's emergency bill would make $8 million in grants available for the upgrades and would take effect immediately if it gets two-thirds support in the Legislature.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has written to lawmakers urging them to pass a bill that would help financially strapped station owners defray the cost. State Sen. Dave Cox, R-Fair Oaks, is pushing legislation that would postpone implementation for a year, but it won't be heard until after the deadline passes.
Station owners have known since 2000 that they would be required to install new pumps, nozzles, hoses and other vapor-capturing devices. The requirement is expected to cut smog-causing emissions by 40%.
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