Tennessee will get $4.6 million from Environmental Protection Agency under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to clean up underground petroleum leaks from storage tanks. Nearly one-third of all Americans are threatened by leaking underground storage tanks that contaminate groundwater, the agency says.

The funds will help assess and repair damage at 44 sites with leaking underground storage tanks across the state.

The program also hopes to generate jobs. “These funds provided by the Recovery Act will allow contractors to put more people on the job of performing this important environmental cleanup work,” Governor Phil Bredesen said.

The funds are part of $197 million Recovery Act funds to clean up sites contaminated by petroleum from leaking underground tanks. The funds will be used for overseeing assessment and cleanup of the leaks or paying for assessment and cleanup of leaks from federally regulated tanks where the party responsible is unknown, unwilling or unable to finance, or the cleanup is an emergency response.

Tennessee has deals with three contractors that repair underground storage tank leakages. Under the Recovery Act regulations, they now have to report on jobs created and environmental results achieved. The grant will also fund 18 corrective action systems to be used to clean sites approved by EPA. It is expected to boost equipment manufacturers, too. The equipment purchased in the effort will become state property and will be used at other sites in future.

“The Recovery Act funds will help Tennessee in its effort to provide long-term protection from pollution caused by leaking underground storage tank,” said Stan Meiburg, EPA's acting regional administrator in Atlanta.  “The state will use the funds to assess and clean up abandoned tank sites while providing a boost to its economy through the creation of green jobs.”

All Recovery Act funds through this program must be spent by September 30, 2011, and at least 15 percent has to be spent in the first year.