Groundwater and soil contamination in Bloomington's Ward 4, resulting from a gasoline leak nearly 30 years ago, continues to be contained. As a result, the Bloomington City Council is entering into an agreement with the Freedom Oil station that discovered the leak and made repairs to stop it.
The agreement came up last month, but Alderwoman Amelia Buragas, who represents the area, says she tabled it in a move to gather more information and let the public know what's happening. "Obviously, when you hear the word 'groundwater contamination,' people are very concerned. 'What does that mean?' 'Am I safe?' And it gave us an opportunity to really reach out to some of the individuals in this area, and answer those questions, and to make sure they have the reasources they needed to feel comfortable before council moved forward."
Buragas says the agreement now requires the current owner to offset additional costs the city might have when working on infrastructure near the business. "If we ever do any work in the area where we're digging up soil and we need to dispose of it or we need to treat it in any way or we need to take additional safety precations to make sure that our workers are not exposed to some of this groundwater that's down there, we will be able to recoup those costs."
That part of the agreement has to be in force for it to be valid. However, it's not clear whether future owners will have the same liabilities. Corporation Counsel Jeff Jurgens says it's possible. "Typically, it's just with the current owner of the property, but there may be ways we look at recording it against the property and making it applicable to future owners." The agreement with the station is expected to be finalized in the next few weeks.