Gas stations are leaking underground

Gas stations caused a $20 billion toxic mess — and it’s not going away, Kate Yoder writes for Grist in a story co-published with Crosscut

In a nutshell:

It's not whether a gas station will pollute. It's when and how much. The underground steel tanks that became the industry standard in the years following World War II, when Americans took to the roads like never before, were designed to last no more than 30 years. In a great many cases the tanks remained in the ground well beyond 30 years; long after failure and subsequent leaking of the contents through corrosion, trauma or abandonment. By the early 1970's, oil companies marshaled their best legal minds and set out to put some distance between their interests and a looming liability storm by selling stations and cutting loose independent owners.

Key quote:

"I have talked to several gas station owners that have purchased gas stations from Big Oil. I think that some of the property owners really didn't understand what they were getting into when they released that liability," said Ryan Bixby, managing principal at SoundEarth, who oversees cleanups in Washington state.

Big picture:

With Big Oil successfully washing their hands of the responsibility and liability related to underground gasoline storage tanks and insurance companies exiting the market en masse, small gas station owners were forced to assume liability without the resources to do so. Forced to upgrade tanks or install new ones, many small owners just walked away and abandoned tanks that continued to corrode and leak. The good news is that technological advances in the 1990's have greatly reduced problems with underground petroleum storage. The bad news is that there are some 60,000 legacy properties awaiting remediation and an entire generation of steel tanks approaching the end of their life. Upon facing a looming public health hazard and a huge backlog of toxic sites, states are now looking for remediation relief from taxpayers.

Read Kate Yoder's story at Grist or Crosscut.

grist.org

Credit: Aakash Malik / Unsplash+

Increased autism risk linked to exposure to wildfire smoke during pregnancy

In a first-of-its-kind study published in Environmental Science and Technology, researchers found that mothers who were exposed to wildlife smoke during the third trimester of pregnancy were more likely to have children diagnosed with autism by age 5.

In short:

More frequent exposure to wildlife smoke during pregnancy was associated with a higher risk of autism in children.
The study analyzed more than 200,000 mother-child pairs in Southern California between 2006 to 2014; nearly 60% of them were exposed to wildfire smoke for more than 5 days during pregnancy.
The authors also found that prenatal exposure to particulate matter air pollution from a variety of sources — not just wildfires — is associated with an increased risk of autism in children.

Key quote:

“As climate change increases the frequency and intensity of wildfires in many parts of the world, understanding their relationship with autism is important to being able to develop preventive policy and interventions that will protect pregnant women and their children.”

- Study co-author Mostafijur Rahman, via Tulane University’s accompanying press release

Why this matters:

As climate change continues to impact global weather patterns, wildfires have become increasingly intense and frequent. Their impact on air pollution is significant - in California, wildfires account for over 70% of the fine particulate matter exposure on days with poor air quality. Environmental hazards that affect the health of pregnant people and their children can have long-term and severe outcomes. The authors of this study underscore the need for policies that protect vulnerable populations from air pollution and reduce the inequality in its health impacts.

Related EHN coverage:

More resources:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Wildfire smoke and pregnancy
Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL): Resources on Air Quality

Luglio, David et al. for Environmental Science & Technology. Jan. 20, 2026

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