HomeMy WebLinkAbout[External]Fw_ Opposed Lake and Mountain Commercial CenterFrom:Peter Sardegna
To:Candice Alvarez
Subject:[External]Fw: Opposed Lake and Mountain Commercial Center
Date:Monday, March 11, 2024 7:35:22 PM
Message from external sender. Use Caution.
Hi Candace,
I would like the email below to be read into record.
reference item #17 for tuesday 03/12/2024 city council public hearing.
Thank you and have a great day
Peter Sardegna
----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Peter Sardegna <psardegna0@yahoo.com>
To: NJOHNSON@LAKE-ELSINORE.ORG <njohnson@lake-elsinore.org>
Cc: JMENDOZA@LAKE-ELSINORE.ORG <jmendoza@lake-elsinore.org>
Sent: Sunday, March 10, 2024 at 01:21:01 PM PDT
Subject: Opposed Lake and Mountain Commercial Center
Hi my name is Peter Sardegna and I live across the street from this property.
Before I state all the facts about how bad gas station are near homes, I would like to
know how this got passed in the first place? Why would we place a gas station in the
middle of a residential community with zero commercial properties remotely near us?
This is one of the few parts of Lake Elsinore that doesn't have high crime and its due
to lack of businesses. All the homeless and drug addicts thrive around all the
commercial properties especially at night and all the residential communities
surrounded by those commercial properties suffer and now you guys are trying to
bring this to our community.
Instead of letting someone who owns a 76 gas station in Orange County and I doubt
lives in Riverside County let alone Lake Elsinore, why aren't our insanely high taxes
used to help the community instead of bring it down. This land could have been a
park, soccer field or playground for the kids in our community.
What our community wants and needs is a gas station at Lake street and 15 fwy
where there is a bunch of open land and zero residential communities.
Below is a snapshot the property for the proposed gas station and across the street is
where I live which is also circled.
Inline image
Now for the statistical facts about gas stations near residential homes.
Health Effects: Is It Safe to Live Near a Gas Station
A number of compounds injurious to human health are released from gas stations
during vehicle fueling and from underground storage tank vents. These compounds
include: benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, and xylene (BTEX). Measures to reliably
resolve these adverse health effects are not employed at new gas stations.
Benzene is the gasoline constituent most harmful to human health. Adverse health
effects of benzene include nausea, cancer, anemia, increased susceptibility to
infections, and low birth weight. According to the World Health Organization Guidelines
for Indoor Air Quality there is no safe level for benzene. The following research
documents the extent of benzene releases from gas stations as well as adverse health
effects:
A 1993 study published by the Canadian petroleum industry found average benzene
concentrations of 146 and 461 parts per billion (ppb) at the gas station property
boundary in summer and winter, respectively.
A 2001 study noted median ambient benzene levels of 1.9 ppb in houses up to 328
feet from a service station.
A 2003-2004 study conducted in France documented a significant relationship
between childhood leukemia and living near a gas station.
A 2010 study conducted in Spain documented elevated air pollution within 100
meters (328 feet) of a gas station.
In 2012, Brazilian researchers found that air quality was significantly degraded up to
150 meters (492 feet) from gas stations.
In 2005, the California Air Resources Board probably became the first in the U.S. to
recommend a minimum public health safety zone between new gas stations and
“sensitive land uses.” The recommendation appeared in Air Quality and Land Use
Handbook: A Community Health Perspective. The pre-2005 studies referenced above
and other research prompted the Board to recommend a minimum 300-foot separation
distance between new gas stations and “sensitive land uses such as residences,
schools, daycare centers, playgrounds, or medical facilities.” The State of California is
widely recognized as having some of the most effective air pollution control
requirements in the nation. Yet even with California controls a minimum separation is
still required to protect public health.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency echoed concerns about the health risk
associated with gas station emissions in their School Siting Guidelines. The USEPA
recommended screening school sites for potential health risk when located within
1,000 feet of a gas station.
The last (Zoning) section of this webpage contains a sampling of the public health
safety zones for new gas station adopted by other U.S. jurisdictions. Most call for a
greater separation then the 300 feet recommended by the California Air Resources
Board. The increasing safety zone distances were prompted by the growing body of
research showing that adverse health effects extend further and further from gas
stations. In fact, a 2019 study of U.S. gas stations found that benzene emissions from
underground gasoline storage tank vents were sufficiently high to constitute a health
concern at a distance of up to 524-feet. Also, the researchers noted:
“emissions were 10 times higher than estimates used in setback regulations [like
that in the California handbook] used to determine how close schools,
playgrounds, and parks can be situated to the facilities [gas stations].”
Prior to the 2019 study it was thought that most of the benzene was released at the
pump during fueling. A 2015 paper noted the following bit of irony with regard to vapor
recovery and harmful emissions from gas station storage tanks:
“It is important to note that vapor recovery at the nozzle can cause vapor
releases at the storage tank, because vapors recovered at the nozzle are typically
directed into the storage tank. The storage tank, in turn, can “breathe” and
potentially release recovered vapors immediately or at a later time. A tank sucks
in relatively uncontaminated air as the liquid fuel level drops in the tank due to
vehicle refueling, and it releases vapors through the vent pipe into the
atmosphere if the gas pressure increases and exceeds the cracking pressure of
the pressure/vacuum valve, when fuel evaporates into unequilibrated gas in the
headspace.”
The 2015 paper contained the following summary regarding the health implications of
living, working or learning near a gas station:
“Health effects of living near gas stations are not well understood. Adverse
health impacts may be expected to be higher in metropolitan areas that are
densely populated. Particularly affected are residents nearby gas stations who
spend significant amounts of time at home as compared to those who leave their
home for work because of the longer period of exposure. Similarly affected are
individuals who spend time close to a gas station, e.g., in close by businesses or
in the gas station itself. Of particular concern are children who, for example, live
nearby, play nearby, or attend nearby schools, because children are more
vulnerable to hydrocarbon exposure.”
A study published in 2021 documented that adverse health are increased when a
neighborhood is near multiple gas stations.
Idling engines, particularly those in large diesel trucks, emit a large quantity of
particulates into the local atmosphere. These particulates can pose a significant health
risk for those living near convenience store/truck stops.
Control Measures Do Not Resolve Health Threat
The two most common control measures are Stage I and Stage II vapor recovery.
Stage I measures reduce vapor release when gas station underground storage tanks
are being filled by tanker trucks. They do not control releases during the 99% of time
when tanks are not being filled.
Stage II measures reduce vapor releases when you and I are fueling our cars at the
pump. A decade ago most gas pump nozzles were designed to capture vapors
released during refueling. The vapors were then sent to the 10,000- to 20,000-gallon
underground tanks where gasoline is stored. These Stage II vapor recovery systems
were phased out beginning in 2012 as a result of the widespread use of Onboard
Refueling Vapor Recovery (ORVR) systems.
As the name implies, Onboard Refueling Vapor Recovery systems are built into new
cars. The system captures vapors during refueling which are then stored in canisters
within the vehicle. A study published in February, 2020, examined the effectiveness of
Onboard Refueling Vapor Recovery systems. The researchers found that 88% of
vehicles monitored released vapors during refueling despite the presence of Onboard
Refueling Vapor Recovery systems.
While the 2020 study may raise a question about health risks to consumers pumping
gas, a 2021 study found that this was not an issue. The researchers found that
consumers filling their vehicles under normal conditions were not exposed to
sufficient benzene from filling alone to pose a significant health risk. However, the
cumulative effect of benzene released during fueling and from underground storage
tank vents remains a cause for concern for those living, working or learning nearby.
The unfortunate conclusion from these studies is that we cannot rely upon controls
required for new gas stations to resolve the health and safety threat to those who
living in the vicinity of a proposed gas station.
Lighting Impacts
Lighting is essential to convenience store safety and profitability. We’re less likely to
patronize a poorly lit store while criminals find this inviting. But too much lighting and
area residents may suffer glare in their bedrooms or lose their view of the nighttime
sky.
There’s a phenomenon known as ratcheting where one business installs bright lights.
The new lights cause nearby establishments to look darker than before, so they install
brighter lights and on the upward spiral goes. Ratcheting can greatly increase light
trespass impacts to area residents.
Fortunately new LED lights and other approaches can make a convenience store safe
and attractive. The lighting should be fully shielded and follow the latest
recommendations of the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA)
along with those of the International Dark-Sky Association.
Noise
All of us who have taken our cars in for service are familiar with the many loud noises
generated by repair facilities. Tire air guns produce a noise level of 104 dBA and the
air chisels used in body shops emits 112 dBA. An accelerating diesel truck emits 114
dBA and even 100 dBA while idling. Make it a late-night or all-night establishment and
you have a use which definitely does not belong near homes.
So how close is too close? CEDS recommends a minimum separation of 300 feet
between homes and late-night/all-night stores. However, a site-specific noise analysis
may show a lesser setback will adequately protect area homes. Such an analysis
should distinguish between rural and urban settings. A nighttime noise level of 55 dBA
may be OK in a city or suburb while 45 dBA is more appropriate for rural areas.
How Do Gas Stations Affect Property Value
Do gas stations and convenience stores affect the value of nearby homes? While there
appears to be little independent research into this question, here are a couple of
articles giving an anecdotal indication:
Cemeteries, highways, gas stations: “Here’s what decreases your property value:
Gas stations, railroad tracks, hydro towers, power stations, and industrial areas —
proximity to any of these things definitely won’t help improve your home value,
since they can generate and/or attract odors or other substances that could affect
your air quality.”
10 Industries That Diminish Property Values The Most: “2. Convenience Store With
Gas Station. People will be driving in and out of your intersection, hanging out at the
property, and buying lots of lotto tickets, cigarettes, and beer when they gas up.
Although handy, these shops do nothing to help property values and hurt them
significantly according to Zillow.com. Although the realtors questioned on the site
did not have exact statistics, common sense would show that the increase in
robberies, accidents, traffic and pedestrians would add up to decreased property
value. Still, many gas stations with mini-markets are springing up like wildfire.”
In the past Federal Housing Administration (FHA) insured mortgages were not
available for properties located within 300 feet of tanks capable of storing 1,000
gallons or more of gasoline or other flammable-explosive materials.
River, Lake, Well-Water & Other Aquatic Resource Impacts
Because of the high traffic volume and refueling, convenience stores-gas stations
pose an unusually severe threat to ground and surface waters. Adding vehicle
servicing facilities increases the threat. One study found that contaminant levels in
convenience store-gas station runoff were 5- to 30-times higher when compared to
residential runoff. In another study researchers detected several compounds in vehicle
repair facility runoff which were probable cancer-causing agents. These findings have
prompted a number of states and local governments to list vehicle repair facilities
as stormwater hotspots. USEPA guidance advises caution with regard to allowing
hotspot runoff to infiltrate the soil, particularly in areas where drinking water is
obtained through wells. The use of highly-effective stormwater Best Management
Practices to treat repair facility runoff before it is infiltrated into the soil.
Fuel storage tanks and pipelines pose another source of contamination, though the
design of both has improved dramatically over the past couple of decades. Spillage at
the pump is a more likely source of fuel release into nearby waterways. In fact, Johns
Hopkins University researchers found that an average of 40 gallons of gasoline is
spilled at a typical gas station per year at the pumps. The JHU researchers also found
that a significant portion of the spilled gasoline can migrate through the concrete pads
at many fueling stations.
So how far should a gas station be from a well or surface waters to reduce the
likelihood of contamination to a reasonable level? Well, the key question is actually
how far can one anticipate that a plume of spilled gasoline will travel underground.
One review of scientific studies of plume travel indicated that the 90th percentile
distance is 400 feet. Add another 100 feet for installing grout curtains or other
containment measures and a gas station should be no closer than 500 feet to a well,
wetland, spring, stream, river, pond, lake, reservoir or tidal waters.
Good & Bad Convenience Store-Station Locations
Given the impacts and corrective measures described above, an optimum convenience
store-gas station location would have the following characteristics:
At least 500 feet from the nearest home; or
Buffered so the store cannot be seen or heard from the nearest home;
To preserve public health a minimum if 500 feet from homes and 1,000 feet from
schools;
Not within view of historic resources;
At least 500 feet from wells, springs, streams, reservoirs or other highly sensitive
ground or surface water resources;
3.6 Million Gallons Per Year & 300-Feet Insufficient
References to 3.6 million gallons per year and 300-foot setbacks appear to derive from
the 2005, California Air Resources Board Air Quality and Land Use Handbook: A
Community Health Perspective. Handbook Figure 1-6 below shows how cancer risk
diminishes with distance from a gas station pumping 3.6 million gallons per year.
The relationship shown in the graph above may no longer be valid for the following
reasons. First, a number of studies have been published since 2005. These studies
show that the most harmful compound – benzene – has been detected more than 500
feet from a gas station. Second, California has what are arguably the most
comprehensive gas station air pollution control requirements in the U.S. However, it
has not been proven that these measures resolve the adverse health effects of gas
station benzene emissions.
The following graph is from the California Air Resources Board Gasoline Service
Station Industrywide Risk Assessment Guidelines. This graph is based on the quantity
of gas pumped by most stations – 1 million gallons per year not 3.6. New gas stations
outside of California might have Phase I controls. The graph below shows that with
Phase I controls an unacceptably high risk of increased cancer cases persists beyond
300 meters (328 feet).
All but older vehicles have Onboard Refueling Vapor Recovery (ORVR) systens. As the
name implies, Onboard Refueling Vapor Recovery captures vapors during refueling.
The vapors are then stored in canisters within the vehicle.
A study published in February, 2020, examined the effectiveness of Onboard Refueling
Vapor Recovery systems. The researchers found that 88% of vehicles monitored
released vapors during refueling despite the presence of Onboard Refueling Vapor
Recovery systems.
Minimum 500-Foot Public Health Safety Zone Needed
The research cited above indicates that the most reliable way to protect public health
and safety from benzene and other harmful emissions is to guide new gas stations to
sites where they will be at least 500 feet from residentially zoned properties, schools,
and other locations where people live, learn or work. CEDS research frequently shows
a third to half of potential gas station sites can meet a 500-foot public healthy safety
zone. In other words, adopting this safeguard allows us to gain the benefits of new
gas stations without jeopardizing the health of our neighbors.
Examples of Other Safeguards
Here are examples of other safeguards:
New Hampshire: DES’s rules for the siting of UST (Underground Storage Tank)
systems at new sites include the following setbacks:
500′ from public water supplies (PWSs)
250′ between gasoline USTs and private wells
75′ between any UST and surface water.
Citrus Heights, CA: Distance requirements. No on-sale or off-sale liquor
establishment shall be maintained within 500 feet of any other on-sale or off-sale
liquor establishment, or within 500 feet from the following “consideration points”:
Schools (public or private); Churches or other places of worship; Hospitals, clinics,
or other health care facilities; and 4. Public parks and playgrounds and other similar
uses.
Baltimore County, MD: A finding by the Zoning Commissioner of the presence of
one abandoned fuel service station, as defined in Section 405.3, within a one-half-
mile radius, or two such stations within a one-mile radius of the proposed fuel
service station establishes that there is no need for the proposed use, unless
rebutted to the Zoning Commissioner’s satisfaction by market data.
East St. Louis, Illinois: All new gasoline service stations shall be located and
constructed not less than 300 feet apart, and no new gasoline service station shall
be built unless enclosed in a garage.
Ford Heights, Illinois: It shall be unlawful for any person to locate, build, construct
or maintain any public garage or gasoline filling station, the storage of filling tanks,
pumps or devices of which are used for the purpose of storing, drawing off or
discharging gasoline, oil or other volatile inflammable liquid, within 150 feet of any
school, measured from the nearest point of the tank or filling or discharging device
used in connection therewith, to the nearest point of any such building.
If you’re concerned about a proposed establishment and your local zoning ordinance
lack these safeguards, then consider asking local elected officials for an amendment.
If a convenience store-gas station application has or is about to be submitted then
consider asking that it and all other applications be put on hold while officials study
the best way to update zoning requirements.
Existing Gas Station-Convenience Stores & Reducing Impacts
If you live within a thousand feet of a gas station or your children attend a nearby
school, then consider calling for measures that can reduce impacts.
Closing An Existing Gas Station Near Impossible, But Winning Changes is More Doable
As you’ve likely guessed, stopping a gas station where construction has started or is
completed is nearly impossible. However, convincing the owner to voluntarily adopt
measures that reduce or even fully resolve neighborhood impacts is easier to achieve.
It’s even possible to convince government agencies to require impact reduction
measures.
Verify That All Permits-Approvals Have Been Issued & Are Being Complied With
If a gas station is under construction then the first step should always be to verify that
all permits and other approvals have been granted. If one or more permits-approvals
are yet to be issued, then it may be possible to get impact reduction measures added
as permit conditions. And there’s always a remote chance that some unknown fact
may emerge that could result in blocking the issuance of a remaining permit-approval.
At the very least, contesting issuance could gain the leverage needed to convince the
owner to implement impact reduction measures.
Examples of Impacts & Reduction Measures
Here are a few examples of impact reduction measures:
Usually the greatest health threat posed by a gas station is the benzene released to
the air from underground fuel storage tank vents and at the pump. Benzene can
increase the risk of cancer for those living, learning or working within 500- to 1,000-
feet. There are measures that can prevent most of the benzene from being
released but they can be expensive costing $60,000 – $100,000 to install and
$1,000/year to maintain.
If alcohol will be sold at a gas station-convenience store then this may increase the
likelihood of crime, especially if it is sold as carry-out as opposed to onsite
consumption only. This impact can be reduced by prohibiting alcohol sales or at
least limiting it to beer and wine.
If children pass by a convenience store on their way to and from school then
the junk food sold in the store can add to childhood obesity as well as pose a
respiratory health issue due to tobacco or vape sales.
A gas station can also impact neighborhood residents due to light
trespass, increased fire-explosion danger, noise, loss of property
value, groundwater or aquatic resource impacts, or cause traffic issues.
If you loved this community as much as my family
and I do, you wouldn't approve this property being
built.
Any questions regarding this email do not hesitate to ask.
Peter Sardegna