EPA Enforcement Roundup: Week of 6/20

Every day, facilities across the US receive Notices of Violation from Federal and State environmental agencies for alleged noncompliance with a wide variety of programs like the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts, chemical management and reporting regulations (TSCA, EPCRA, CERCLA, etc.), hazardous waste management and disposal standards (RCRA), and much more.
 
In January 2017, EPA raised its fines for noncompliance with major environmental programs. We hope that providing information about EPA enforcement cases will help you identify and fix noncompliance issues that could leave your company facing costly penalties and future liability.

In this week's EPA Enforcement Roundup, a group of defense contractors will pay $3.1 million to reimburse the US Air Force and US EPA for hazardous substance cleanup costs at a used by the US military to launch missiles and rockets since the 1940s.

WHO: A group of defense contractors
WHERE: Brevard County, FL
WHAT: RCRA cleanup cost recovery
HOW MUCH: $3.1 million

 

To reimburse the US Air Force and US EPA for hazardous substances cleanup at a Florida Air Force Base and rocket launch station, a group of contractors will pay more than $3 million. The contaminated areas are offshoots or “detachments” of the Patrick Air Force Base, used by the Department of Defense and NASA to launch rockets and missiles since 1949.

Cleanup work in the affected areas has been performed since 2002 under the authority of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Hazardous substances found in the soil or groundwater include PCBs, trichloroethylene (TCE), arsenic, benzenes, chloroform, lead, and others.

Get more details in the full Department of Justice complaint here.

WHO: A home developer
WHERE: New York & New Jersey
WHAT: Clean Water Act violations
HOW MUCH: $425,000

Nearly ten years after EPA allegedly uncovered stormwater permit violations at 23 home building sites, a real estate developer has settled with EPA for $425,000. According to EPA’s press release, the developer failed to obtain National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits for the sites and did not implement a stormwater pollution prevention plan (SPPP) to prevent contaminants from entering nearby waterways.

In addition to paying the six-figure civil penalty and obtaining necessary NPDES permits, the developer will prepare and implement SPPPs, conduct weekly inspections, submit annual compliance summary reports to EPA, and implement a nationwide stormwater training program for all employees involved in construction activities. 

Like some other states, New Jersey has implemented stormwater management requirements that are more stringent than US EPA’s standards. For more information on how NPDES permit requirements can vary by state, read: How NPDES permit Rules Vary By State.

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The 2017 nationwide schedule for the Complete Environmental Regulations Workshop is now available. Collaborate with other managers to identify the requirements that apply to your facility, ask the right questions, and make the right decisions about EPA compliance.

Tags: CERCLA, Clean Water Act, EPA, EPA Enforcement Roundup, fines and penalties, RCRA