Storage Tank Corrective Action Program

The Storage Tank Corrective Action Program of the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) oversees the cleanup of petroleum and chemical contamination at properties where a release has occurred from underground or aboveground storage tanks. DNREC's Remediation Section administers the program.

In a Phase I ESA

DNREC's tank release sites are the Delaware form of the state leaking storage tank records that ASTM E1527-21 lists as a standard source. The general reading of a leaking tank listing is on the LUST page. One Delaware program covers releases from both underground and aboveground tanks, and the tanks themselves are registered under the Underground storage tank (UST) compliance program and the Aboveground storage tank (AST) program.

Four Delaware details shape how to read a release case.

• One guidance sets the cleanup goals. DNREC says investigation and remediation are guided by the Delaware Risk-Based Corrective Action Program (DERBCAP), a risk-based approach that assesses the human health and environmental risks of petroleum and chemical impacts to soil and groundwater. If remediation is required, DERBCAP is used to develop the cleanup goals.
• The program offers more guidance. Besides DERBCAP, the program offers a Hydrogeologic Investigation Guide, sampling guides for aboveground and underground tanks, a PFAS policy and sampling guidance, DNREC's division-wide Vapor Intrusion Pathway Guidance, and a vapor barrier design checklist.
• The state pays to close some home heating oil tanks. The Residential Heating Fuel Tank Closure Assistance Program removes or closes in place residential heating fuel underground tank systems of 1,100 gallons or less used to heat the premises where they are located. DNREC says it is not a reimbursement program: the work is done under State of Delaware contracts by select DNREC-certified closure contractors, with funds appropriated from the Hazardous Substance Cleanup Act fund.
• A state fund covers some closures and cleanups. DNREC's Storage Tank Assistance Fund (STAF), formerly the FIRST Fund, is used where the tank owner or responsible party cannot be identified, has abandoned the property or has demonstrated an inability to pay, or where contamination has been found but cannot be immediately traced to a tank. A site must meet specific criteria to be eligible.

The program's laws are 7 Del.C. Chapter 74 for underground tanks and 7 Del.C. Chapter 74A for aboveground tanks, with the rules in 7 DE Admin. Code 1351 and 1352. The Remediation Section keeps a list of environmental investigation and remediation consultants for leaking tank sites.

Where to look a site up

• DNREC says information on underground and aboveground tank release sites is available on the Delaware Environmental Navigator (DEN), linked to its release search.
• The Remediation Section is at 391 Lukens Drive, New Castle, Delaware 19720, at 302-395-2600 and DNREC_WHS_REMEDIATIONINBOX@delaware.gov.
• For the two assistance programs, DNREC gives Tanks Compliance at 302-395-2500, and the mailboxes DNREC_HFAP@delaware.gov for heating fuel tank closure applications and DNREC_STAF@delaware.gov for STAF eligibility.

Getting the file

DNREC's corrective action page says a request for information may be made through the Freedom of Information Act; the route is on the DNREC FOIA Requests page. DNREC's Tank Management Documents page says select scanned facility files are available through the Delaware Environmental Navigator.

Sources

Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control pages, read October 13, 2026:

• Storage Tank Corrective Action, last modified June 5, 2025.
• Financial Assistance Programs, last modified September 28, 2026.
• The Remediation Section, last modified September 1, 2026.
• Tanks Compliance, last modified August 25, 2025.
• Tank Management Documents, last modified June 17, 2026.