Annapolis Fuel Dock Closing

[Ron20324]

I got this "sign-of-the-times " notice today. Makes no mention of the pumpout station. This closing will send oodles of boats to the fuel available in the Annapolis Harbor, which also means that boats will be circling in the channel between the fuel dock and mooring field while waiting for space on the dock.

""" To Our Valued Fuel Customers:
Aggressive regulation of retail fuel sales in Annapolis by city, state and federal governments and agencies has resulted in a future in which costs to operate our fuel dock will soon be prohibitively expensive and not recoverable. As a result, I find it wise to close our retail operation for the foreseeable future starting Monday, December 5, 2016. I regret the inconvenience to you and the loss to us. After both Jabin and Port Annapolis shut down their fuel docks some years ago, I hoped that Annapolis Landing would be able to maintain a viable operation in Back Creek where it is so needed. To date we have succeeded. As for the future, I have opened communication with both the city and the state to see if there are some accommodations from them that will permit us to operate at least somewhat in the black. How long that will take I do not know, but I have optimism. As soon as I have reliable information of value to you, you will be the first to know.
Annapolis Landing Marina"""

 

[alexco38]

Use a fuel dock almost 10 years ago. Only use yellow fuel can now.

 

[Gunni]

Less than 2 weeks ago they said they were shutting down the fuel dock for the winter to make repairs to their system. A properly maintained fuel system is a proper fuel system so don't know why they would need the City and State to give them something to "stay in the black?" They are in a market, not running a charity.

 

[Bad Obsession]

Sounds like a job for the lawyers in Boat US to start advocating for. Seriously, this is pretty bad.

 

[PaulK]

Sounds like they've been required to replace leaking fuel tanks. (City, State and Federal; check, check and check) Our club has run into this issue too, so we started budgeting for it -- five years ago. The letter is quite opaque on what is actually causing them to shut down. Maybe they don't sell enough fuel in the wintertime to warrant the required staffing (Minimum wage is a Federal law - maybe they'd need to up prices to $28/gal to cover that, and wouldn't sell any fuel at that price?) Lots of tempest in this teapot. What did we find out about the Harbormaster getting fired down there?

 

[Gunni]

What did we find out about the Harbormaster getting fired down there?

Some cash went missing from the Master's safe, Mr. Walters is not a suspect, but found negligent.

 

[Ron20324]

[QUOTE="Gunni:...Some cash went missing from the Master's safe, Mr. Walters is not a suspect, but found negligent.[/QUOTE]
The firing itself was because it was not reported missing by the dockmaster for about a month. Not sure who discovered the missing money.

 

[CloudDiver]

Certainly not enough details to make any informed conclusion, but my gut tells me this has to do with regulation/permits/fees/environmental restrictions etc. that small business just cannot afford. These types of situations keep happening but never get any press. Only corporations can afford the bureaucracy to stay in business, lobbyists push the regulations to force small business out. Anyone on this forum that privately owns a restaurant is intimately familiar with this, and I'm sure there are other small business owners of different industries who have similar experiences.

 

[quadrille38]

I have no specifics on this situation but I'd like to offer another perspective.

I've spent 39 years of my career as an environmental professional. It's easy to blame regulations, permits and environmental impacts as the cause of business challenges.
Trust me, these regulations did not come into being because someone woke up one day, decided to make life miserable for small business and pulled these regulations out of their - well I won't say.

Regulations exist because there was more than enough demonstrated history to show that there were many serious problems and that it was in societies best interest to try to prevent more of them. Thus regulations get created.

I've personally been involved with dozens of underground tank and piping removals. Through colleagues and being in the industry I've become knowledgeable on thousands more.
Single wall steel underground tanks have an engineering life of say 20 years. Steel piping likely shorter. This assumes it was all properly installed, there was no galvanic corrosion, and there were no ground shifts that caused abrasion or cracking of the tank or its piping.
I'd bet that very few businesses take the step to dig up and replace an underground tank when it has exceeded its expected life. Believe me I've seen everything from pinhole corrosion in a tank to piping that fell apart because it rusted through.

Beyond tank life we have the issues of fuel handling practices. In the old days when fuel was being delivered to tanks by the supplier there was often spillage and no one worried because well it would just evaporate. Same when people were dispensing fuel and they spilled it. Well guess what it doesn't evaporate. It soaks into the ground where the potential to contaminate ground water exists. The same water many of us drink. One gallon of gasoline will contaminate a million gallons of water to levels that are unsafe to drink. I've seen sites where there was as much as 8 to 10 feet of gasoline floating on the ground water surface more that 20 feet underground.

Remediating these contaminated sites can run from hundreds of thousands to tens of millions of dollars.
And often the companies that owned these tanks and caused the contamination have long since ceased to exist, or were financially unable to shoulder the burden of the clean up.

Multiply this by the millions of underground tanks that are or used to be in service in the US and you can begin to get a sense of the cost and societal impact.

It is very unfortunate that this particular business has chosen to discontinue providing this valuable (I'd say essential) service to the boaters of your community. I can only hope that the owner rethinks this decision or that someone else will step in and provide this service.

But to take the kneejerk reaction to immediately blame government and regulations is uninformed and unfortunately too typical in today's climate.

 

[Scott T-Bird]

But to take the kneejerk reaction to immediately blame government and regulations is uninformed and unfortunately too typical in today's climate.

All preceding points are well taken, but it isn't exactly accurate to dismiss resistance to over-burdening regulation as a "kneejerk reaction". It is a reality that regulations are usually a double-edged sword. Anybody in the private sector recognizes that regulations usually do impact the smaller businesses the hardest. I work in an industry where the largest competitors usually feast on the spoils of market share when the smaller competitors give up due to the time and expense of regulation. I would have to agree that engineers, scientists, educators, bureaucrats and especially LAWYERS boost their incomes and enjoy security with the work that is created by the necessity to navigate through the regulation maze that is created by our political leaders via the bureaucracy. As long as we can ALL afford to pay the price, all is good, no?

 

[Deleted member 117556]

Don't forget an epa full of activists. I see it every day with ridiculous new regulations. Hopefully the new admin will bring some sense back into the equation.

 

[justsomeguy]

Hopefully the new admin will bring some sense back into the equation.

Gotta admire your seeming optimism.

 

[Scott T-Bird]

The reality is that along with the benefits of regulations there are the costs. Bureaucrats and educators often won't acknowledge the costs, under the assumption that the benefits ALWAYS outweigh the costs, and they usually believe that businesses and the markets have an endless supply of money to keep things just as they were, only better because of the environmental regulation. That's where the "kneejerk reaction" comment comes into play. It's a dismissal that businesses do suffer at the cost of regulation. It's a fact that the bigger fish swallow the smaller fish in the regulatory environment because that is what the regulated market dictates. Then we hear the complaint that evil corporations are driving prices higher and limiting services. In the meantime, mom & pops go out of business, and frugal (less well-healed) boaters take their yellow cans to the highway filling stations for a more economical source of fuel. We all seek balance in our regulated environment as we see fit. Unfortunately, that means that changes happen, often to our chagrin.