EPA Enforcement Roundup: Week of 10/7
Today, we introduce a new feature here at Lion News—the Friday EPA Enforcement Roundup! Every day, facilities all across America receive Notices of Violation from US EPA for alleged noncompliance with a wide variety of programs like the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts, chemical management and reporting regulations, hazardous waste management and disposal standards, and much more.
EPA raised its maximum civil penalties in 2016, making it more critical than ever that EHS professionals understand how these complex regulatory programs affect their facilities. We hope providing information about EPA enforcement cases will help you identify and fix noncompliance issues that could leave your company facing down costly penalties and future liability.
A Phoenix metal plating facility will pay a $65,000 civil penalty for alleged violations of RCRA hazardous waste rules, including:
According to US EPA, the company provided hazardous waste training for its personnel and made facility upgrades to properly store their waste. EPA inspected the facility in 2014, after the State Department of Environmental Quality and the City of Phoenix had issued notices of violation to the company.
Who: A resort management company
The owners of resorts in two Maine towns will pay $227,500 and restore and protect 64.5 acres of wetlands to resolve allegations the company filled wetlands in violation of the Clean Water Act, Section 404. EPA alleges the company filled wetlands on its property for about 25 years.
Who: A major fuels and petrochemicals company
US EPA announced it has settled with a major oil refiner in the California Bay Area, assessing a six-figure fine and requiring the company to modify its piping operations. Among the violations alleged by EPA are:
California’s State environmental rules, including the Department of Toxic Substance Control (DTSC) Title 22 hazardous waste rules, go above and beyond what’s required under Federal law. To build confidence working with California’s unique environmental rules, join an expert Lion instructor for the Complete Environmental Regulations Workshop in San Jose on October 31-November 1 and Los Angeles on November 3-4.
Who: A tank car restoration facility
US EPA is demanding more than $14 million dollars from a tank car restoration company to recoup cleanup costs incurred while removing hazardous substances from the company’s former property.
According to EPA’s complaint, filed with the courts, the company cleaned and restored rail tank cars on its property for nearly 100 years. This included rinsing out tank cars and disposing of residual hazardous substances like arsenic, beryllium, lead, manganese, zinc, nickel, copper, and more. These substances were placed in a lagoon system and later buried in tank cars underground.
These are just a few of the enforcement cases US EPA has wrapped up lately. Find a violation at your site? EPA has a self-audit policy that could allow you to reduce the civil penalty assessment. Find out how the self-audit system works here.
NPDES permitting is just one of the major EPA programs covered at Lion's popular The Complete Environmental Regulations, presented in cities nationwide. If you're responsible for ensuring site compliance with the many complex programs—from the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts to TSCA, FIFRA, EPCRA, and more—this workshop will help you identify the requirements that apply to your facility and make decisions that put your environmental team in a position to succeed.
The 2017 schedule is available now and includes a workshop in our new Environmental Training Center in Sparta, NJ! Register to receive a full year of Lion Membership for complete on-the-job compliance support.
EPA raised its maximum civil penalties in 2016, making it more critical than ever that EHS professionals understand how these complex regulatory programs affect their facilities. We hope providing information about EPA enforcement cases will help you identify and fix noncompliance issues that could leave your company facing down costly penalties and future liability.
Who: A metal plating facility
Where: Phoenix, AZ
For What: US EPA and State hazardous waste rules
How Much: $65,000
A Phoenix metal plating facility will pay a $65,000 civil penalty for alleged violations of RCRA hazardous waste rules, including:- Failure to properly train hazardous waste personnel
- Storage of hazardous waste without a permit
- Failure to properly minimize releases to the air, soil, or water
According to US EPA, the company provided hazardous waste training for its personnel and made facility upgrades to properly store their waste. EPA inspected the facility in 2014, after the State Department of Environmental Quality and the City of Phoenix had issued notices of violation to the company.
Who: A resort management company
Where: Southern Maine
For What: Clean Water Act
How Much: $227,500
The owners of resorts in two Maine towns will pay $227,500 and restore and protect 64.5 acres of wetlands to resolve allegations the company filled wetlands in violation of the Clean Water Act, Section 404. EPA alleges the company filled wetlands on its property for about 25 years. Who: A major fuels and petrochemicals company
Where: San Francisco, CA
For What: EPCRA chemical reporting, US EPA and State hazardous waste rules
How Much: $157,800
US EPA announced it has settled with a major oil refiner in the California Bay Area, assessing a six-figure fine and requiring the company to modify its piping operations. Among the violations alleged by EPA are:- Filing inaccurate or incomplete toxic chemical release reports required under EPCRA
- Failure to properly identify hazardous wastes and RCRA recordkeeping violations
California’s State environmental rules, including the Department of Toxic Substance Control (DTSC) Title 22 hazardous waste rules, go above and beyond what’s required under Federal law. To build confidence working with California’s unique environmental rules, join an expert Lion instructor for the Complete Environmental Regulations Workshop in San Jose on October 31-November 1 and Los Angeles on November 3-4.
Who: A tank car restoration facility
Where: Montgomery County, PA
For What: Recovery of CERCLA/Superfund remediation costs
How Much: $14,009,329.48
US EPA is demanding more than $14 million dollars from a tank car restoration company to recoup cleanup costs incurred while removing hazardous substances from the company’s former property.According to EPA’s complaint, filed with the courts, the company cleaned and restored rail tank cars on its property for nearly 100 years. This included rinsing out tank cars and disposing of residual hazardous substances like arsenic, beryllium, lead, manganese, zinc, nickel, copper, and more. These substances were placed in a lagoon system and later buried in tank cars underground.
These are just a few of the enforcement cases US EPA has wrapped up lately. Find a violation at your site? EPA has a self-audit policy that could allow you to reduce the civil penalty assessment. Find out how the self-audit system works here.
Complete EPA Regulations Workshops – 2017 Schedule Now Available!
NPDES permitting is just one of the major EPA programs covered at Lion's popular The Complete Environmental Regulations, presented in cities nationwide. If you're responsible for ensuring site compliance with the many complex programs—from the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts to TSCA, FIFRA, EPCRA, and more—this workshop will help you identify the requirements that apply to your facility and make decisions that put your environmental team in a position to succeed.The 2017 schedule is available now and includes a workshop in our new Environmental Training Center in Sparta, NJ! Register to receive a full year of Lion Membership for complete on-the-job compliance support.
Tags: Act, Air, Clean, EPA, EPA Enforcement Roundup, EPCRA, RCRA
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