Website and telephone payments Sunday 19 May
Our website and telephone payment systems are unavailable between 9am and 2pm on Sunday 19 May. You will not be able to pay for any council services on our website or over the phone during this time.
A guide to cleaning up after a domestic spillage.
Some residents in North Yorkshire in rural areas rely on heating oil as their primary fuel source for heating and cooking. Faulty or poorly maintained tanks and pipework, or spillages during refuelling, mean that land can become contaminated. Leaked oil can be harmful to human and wildlife, damage property and plants, pollute water courses, make soil infertile, and can be difficult and costly to clean up.
To help minimise the risk of pollution, follow these steps:
Step 1: Get to know your tank
Step 2: Check your tank
Step 3: Maintenance and repair
Step 4: Emergency action
If you discover an oil leak or have a spill:
Remember: It is against the law to cause pollution so you must act quickly to clean up any serious spill or leak
If oil contaminates soil, ground or surface water, damages property or risks harm to human health, you may be required to clean it up under the Environment Protection Act 1990 or the Environment Damage Regulations 2009.
If you pollute water courses such as rivers and streams, the Environment Agency may enforce action under the Water Resources Act 1991.
If another property is affected by fumes the owner/occupier can ask our Environmental Health team to investigate for statutory nuisance under the Environment Protection Act 1990.
The homeowner is usually responsible for the safe storage of oil on their property and for dealing with any spills or leaks.
In rented accommodation, responsibility for maintaining the oil tank and installation lies with the landlord, irrespective of what the tenancy agreement may state. If defects exist to the oil tank or installation these must be reported to the landlord immediately. If the landlord fails to act, tenants can contact us.
Ensure you have insurance cover and that your policy includes the cost of replacing the lost oil, the costs of cleaning up oil on your property and neighbouring land and property, and environmental clean-up for accidental oil loss.
Your instance company may not pay if the leak has been occurring over time, so you should act quickly.