Blog

May 9, 2016

When Do Oil Tanks Become A Problem?

If you live in British Columbia, you might be aware of the history of oil tanks in the province. If not, then oil tanks are something you need to know about. To those who are not informed, oil tanks are simply a metal drum structure that stores oil for heating fuel. However, what you might not know is that oil is not the main source of fuel in BC any more and many buried oil tanks have been forgotten.

Since the middle of the 20th century, BC residents have been using natural gas as their main source of fuel. This means that the oil tanks that were used to store oil that was previously used to provide energy have become obsolete. Back when this was happening, the world was not as environmentally friendly and many people in BC left their unused oil tanks buried underground, not realizing that this could have dangerous repercussions.

This is when oil tanks become a problem. Even though the oil tanks were emptied beforehand, there were still residual traces of oil left in some. This has the potential to leak out as the oil tank rusts and damage the environment around it and contaminate the soil.

Due to this issue, the Government of BC made it the law that you cannot sell a property in Vancouver that has an oil tank on the grounds. Given the high value of property in Vancouver, it was hoped that this would encourage the process of oil tank removal.

Oil tank removal is by far the best way to fix the problem of oil tanks. An oil tank removal company can come to your property if you are planning on selling, or if you are just concerned about the environmental impact an oil tank on your grounds might have. They can use special radar technology to see if you have an oil tank on your grounds in the first place, then they can set about removing it if one is found.

Removing oil tanks is not as big a process as it might seem. The right company will be able to dig up just a small area surrounding the oil tank disassemble it to take it out so they do not have to remove it in one go. The parts of the oil tank will then be recycled and disposed of in an environmentally friendly manner. This process is easy with a good oil tank removal company that will ensure oil tanks are no longer a problem for you.