Deadline nears for retrofitting gasoline pumps in Calif.

Hundreds of California gas stations face fines or even closure if they don't meet an April 1 deadline to retrofit their pumps with a state-mandated vapor-recovery system.
Although station owners have known about the retrofit deadline since 2000, some say they simply cannot afford to make the transition, which costs about $11,000 per pump.
As a result, the state estimates that 5 percent of about 11,000 California stations facing the deadline ultimately will close. The Santa Rosa-based California Service Station and Auto Repair Association projects up to 10 percent.
Others believe the number will be even higher, with smaller, independent station operators particularly vulnerable as they seek financing in the difficult economic climate.
"You may want to pay a visit to one of those conveniently located small gas stations before midnight on March 31 this year," said Washington state-based energy analyst Bob van der Valk. "Because that may be the last day you will be able to stop off for two bucks of gas and a quick cup of coffee."
At stake is a classic economy-vs.-health issue. While station owners, energy industry officials and some lawmakers bemoan the potential loss of thousands of jobs in a state beset with high unemployment, air-quality officials, environmentalists and health officials say public health overrides those concerns.
The California Air Resources Board says the improved nozzles, vapor processors and other equipment will offer an enormous public health benefit -- eliminating the daily release of up to 10 tons of smog-forming compounds as a result of spillage and fumes escaping at gas stations.
Gasoline vapors are primarily made of hydrocarbons, which react with other air pollutants to form ozone that can contribute to respiratory problems, including asthma.
The state also said the enhanced vapor recovery, or EVR, systems will reduce exposure to benzene, a carcinogen.
"We expect a good number of stations to meet the deadline, and the important thing to remember is that this is a public health issue," said Air Resources Board spokesman Dimitri Stanich. "Think of all the people who are coughing and have health problems with ozone, especially in the summer."
Gas station owners are concerned about the immediate economic impact of installing EVR systems -- about $80,000 for a typical service station, according to the industry -- as they try to stay in business while the economy founders and consumers have cut back on gasoline use.
"If you think we're making money, we're not," said Darshan Singh Mundy, owner of the Chevron station at 19th and Broadway in Sacramento. "My (EVR systems) are installed. ... If you include labor, it cost about $170,000. I have a loan on it, but it's very difficult to recover."
Air Resources officials note that station owners have had nearly a decade to get the job done.
Statewide, Air Resources said 38 percent of gas stations have installed EVR systems to date, and 76 percent have acquired permits.
"This is not a surprise. They've known about it for a long time," Stanich said.
E-mail Mark Glover at mglover(at)sacbee.com.

(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
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