When the gas station is open again: What happens to gasoline storage tanks?
As gasoline sales soar in the wake of the Great Recession, a growing number of states have been scrambling to keep up.
As a result, the cost of storing and using gasoline has skyrocketed, and many states are struggling to keep the tanks operational.
The following is a look at some of the challenges that state governments have been facing.
States that rely on gasoline storage for electricity and other needsThe cost of fuel storage is high.
In some states, it can be as much as 40 percent of the cost to run an electricity plant.
In Oklahoma, it’s more than 40 percent.
States with higher gas pricesThe cost for fuel storage has increased.
In Colorado, the state spends $5,000 a year on fuel storage to store and use oil from the oil fields.
That cost has tripled since 2005.
In Georgia, it has tripled.
States have had to cut funding for fuel distributionThe amount of fuel that goes into the distribution system has also doubled.
In Texas, the distribution network is about 70 percent full, and in New York it’s about 60 percent full.
States are having trouble keeping fuel tanks stockedIn the past, fuel storage tanks were used for a variety of purposes, such as storage of fuel for generators, for emergency fuel, for storing compressed natural gas, for recycling, and to help protect against hurricanes.
But now, many states and communities have become so dependent on gasoline sales that they are unable to store enough fuel for emergency use.
Gasoline sales have plummetedThe drop in gas prices has also reduced the demand for fuel tanks.
In fact, gasoline sales fell for three straight months from July 2009 to May 2010.
But because fuel prices have fallen, fuel tanks are being sold at record highs, and they are selling out faster than they were in 2009.
Gas stations that are closing downGas station owners have had their business destroyed in recent years.
In many states, businesses that have long been the primary fuel supplier to the energy industry have had some of their business shut down.
In Tennessee, for example, the only gasoline station still open in the state is a gas station that sells gasoline and sells diesel fuel.
States facing a shortage of fuelThe price of gasoline is rising in many states.
In the state of Texas, for instance, it reached an all-time high of $4.47 per gallon on June 26.
But as of mid-June, the price had dropped to $3.94.
In Illinois, the average price is $3 a gallon.
In the last month, Texas’ average price has dropped below the state’s inflation rate.
But it is still more than double the state average, which was $1.93 in July.
States trying to reduce the number of people who need fuelThe state of California has been trying to curb the growth of its aging population.
On Thursday, it passed a law that requires that if a new state is to add 1.4 million people, it must provide 1,000,000 residents of existing communities with gas station space.
The price for fuel is dropping as well.
On Wednesday, it was $2.65 per gallon.
Now, it is $2 a gallon, and is expected to be $2 per gallon this week.
States battling shortages of certain chemicalsThe price in some states has gone up.
In Arizona, for a month beginning July 15, the gas cost was $3 per gallon, but it has since fallen to $2 and is set to be closer to $1 this week, according to data from the National Gasoline Association.
States have had difficulty keeping fuel out of their fuel tanksStates in other parts of the country are also seeing their fuel costs increase.
In Alaska, the rate for fuel has jumped nearly 25 percent from June to July, according.
In South Dakota, a state that was once the heart of the petroleum industry, the oil price has gone from $8 per barrel in mid-March to $17.30 this week in a state where gas has risen in price, according, to state figures.