Texas Environmental Enforcement Roundup

The Texas Environmental Enforcement Roundup gives you insight into how and why the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality assesses penalties for environmental noncompliance.

All violations or claims discussed below are alleged only unless we say otherwise, and we withhold the names of organizations and individuals to protect their privacy.

A steel wire manufacturer agrees to a settlement involving three alleged hazardous waste violations.

The manufacturer paid $29,760 to resolve the allegations. Per the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ or “the Commission”), the company allowed approximately 15 cubic yards of Class 1 industrial solid waste to be transported off-site and disposed of in an area of a landfill designed for municipal solid waste and Class 2 and Class 3 industrial wastes.

The Commission also stated that the company failed to:

• Update the Notice of Registration by adding a waste stream for the Class 2 press cake waste and updating the primary contact phone number.
• Include an accurate waste code for each waste itemized on the manifest.

A hand sanitizer warehouse settled with TCEQ to resolve the unauthorized storage and disposal of municipal hazardous waste.

The company allegedly stored and/or disposed of approximately 174,750 gallons of expired ethanol-based or recalled methanol-based hand sanitizer at the site without authorization during a four-to-five month period. It will pay a total of $25,200 in penalties in a settlement with the Commission.

A testing and inspection company paid a $22,312 penalty to resolve alleged industrial solid & hazardous waste violations.

The piping and casing testing and inspection company paid the assessed penalty to the Commission. The agreement includes a timeline that describes when each alleged violation must be corrected, and resolves allegations that the company failed to:

• Maintain records of all Industrial Solid Waste activities.
• Conduct hazardous waste determinations and waste classifications for the spent fixer, spent developer, spent photo flo, spent stop bath, and rinse water.
• Submit recycling notifications for the recycling activity of spent fixer and recovered silver flake.

Summer 2024: Texas Hazardous Waste Training in Houston/Dallas

This three-day hazardous waste training prepares professionals in Texas to identify, store, and dispose of regulated hazardous and industrial wastes in compliance with RCRA and 30 TAC regulations. On Day 3, we cover the unique requirements for hazardous and industrial waste enforced by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ).

Complete this training alongside your peers in Dallas or Houston this summer.

Dallas, TX
July 10–12, 2024

Houston, TX
August 12–14, 2024

Tags: hazardous waste management, industrial waste management, TCEQ, Texas