Highlights
- The District of Columbia's Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE) has proposed eliminating automatic underground storage tank (UST) removal requirements that create an "undue burden" on property owners.
- The move would transition procedures from age-based removal to testing-based compliance for older USTs.
- DOEE recognizes that current rules force unnecessary business shutdowns and costly tank replacements.
On Sept. 12, 2025, the District of Columbia's Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE) proposed changes to the city's underground storage tank (UST) regulations (20 DCMR Chapters 57 and 60) that could offer significant relief to property owners in the District of Columbia.
If finalized, the regulations would no longer require that UST owners or operators automatically remove tanks that are more than 30 years old. Under the current regulations adopted in 2020, owners or operators had to remove USTs that were more than 30 years old by Feb. 21, 2025. Owners were also required to perform tank tightness tests on USTs that were more than 30 years old and remove tanks that failed those tests by Feb. 21, 2021. Many of these requirements were not observed in practice given how onerous they were.
The proposed changes to the current regulations would allow USTs that are more than 30 years old to remain in place and instead require that owners perform tank tightness tests every three years and submit those results to DOEE. Initial tightness testing would be required within 90 days after a UST turns 30 years old. For USTs that are already 30 years old, testing would be required within 90 days after the amended rule goes into effect. Any UST that fails its tightness test would need to be removed within one year of the date of test failure. Monthly leak detection and annual piping and leak detection equipment testing would still be required.
Real property owners should become aware of the current requirements and how they might change going forward. These requirements, current and future, are likely to impact real estate transactions and affect negotiations between buyers and sellers in transactions that involve USTs.
In the D.C. Register notice announcing the proposed changes to the current rule, DOEE stated that "the existing removal requirement poses an undue burden on UST owners and operators and does not appreciably reduce the risk to human health or the environment." DOEE noted that the current requirement forces businesses to shut down for weeks to remove tanks that may still be serviceable. This proposed amendment to the regulations is intended by DOEE to reduce some of this regulatory burden on businesses in the District of Columbia.
DOEE determined that requiring triennial tank tightness testing on top of existing annual piping and leak detection equipment testing and monthly leak detection testing "will ensure that older tanks continue to function properly and will not pose a risk to human health or the environment." In due diligence transactions, parties should evaluate whether the seller is complying with the current requirements.
DOEE is accepting comments on the proposed changes to the current rule until Oct. 13, 2025. Holland & Knight will continue to track updates on these and other changes that may impact UST owners or operators in the District of Columbia. For further information or to provide comments on the proposal, please contact the authors.
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