MONTPELIER, Vt. -- Cumberland Farms Inc. will pay $150,000 in civil penalties for multiple violations of Vermont laws governing underground storage tanks at 10 of its Vermont convenience stores at which it sells gasoline, assistant attorney general Nicholas F. Persampieri has announced.
Most of the 39 violations relate to Cumberland Farms' failure to conduct and maintain documentation of release detection monitoring of tanks and associated piping at a number of its stores, and failure to report to the agency and investigate incidents involving release detection monitoring system alarms, the AG's office said.
"This settlement demonstrates the importance of monitoring and other requirements designed to prevent releases of hazardous petroleum products that would harm the environment and endanger public health. Businesses that fail to comply with such requirements will be held accountable," AG William Sorrell said.
The Vermont Agency of Natural Resources discovered the violations during regular inspections of Cumberland Farms' facilities located in Barre, Fairlee, Lyndon, Montpelier, Morrisville, Northfield, Newport, St. Johnsbury and Woodstock conducted between 2005 and 2010.
Under the court approved settlement, Cumberland Farms admits 39 violations of the state's Underground Storage Tank Rules, will pay the state a civil penalty of $150,000 and will implement a compliance plan designed to ensure that all of its facilities in the State remain in compliance with the Underground Storage Tank Rules. The compliance plan requires comprehensive biannual self-inspections for two years and appropriate measures to correct incidences of noncompliance identified through the inspections.
The Cumberland Gulf Group, Framingham, Mass., is a strategic amalgamation of Cumberland Farms Inc. and Gulf Oil LP. Cumberland Farms has a market-leading position throughout the Northeast as well as a significant presence in the Mid-Atlantic region and Florida. Cumberland Farms is parent company to Gulf LP, one of the largest wholesalers of refined petroleum products in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. In 2011, the Cumberland Group generated about $13 billion of sales through a footprint of 589 convenience store locations operated under the Cumberland Farms banner and through the operations of Gulf Oil. The Cumberland Group is a privately held, family-owned and managed company that includes real-estate and midstream gasoline operations.
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