Tuna Producer Caught in EPA Enforcement Net

Posted on 9/15/2017 by Roger Marks

Sorry, Charlie! A major canned tuna fish producer will now pay more than $6,000,000 to resolve alleged violations of wastewater permitting, Clean Water Act, and Clean Air Act chemical storage requirements.

In addition to paying the $6.3 million civil penalty, the company must make facility upgrades and donate at least $88,000 worth of emergency response equipment to help a local fire department respond to chemical releases.

According to the Consent Decree filed this week in a Pittsburgh, PA district court, the company discharged pollutants—nitrogen, phosphorus, oil, grease, and total suspended solids (TSS)—at volumes above permitted levels. The unauthorized discharges occurred due to a change in the composition of the facility’s wastewater that rendered its current treatment process inadequate.

The tuna maker also allegedly failed to properly store refrigerants covered under the Clean Air Act and self-reported RCRA hazardous waste violations to EPA.

In addition to the civil penalty and the donation of emergencey response equipment, the company will upgrade the secondary containment around four oil storage tanks.

20+ Hours of EHS Manager Training—Available Anytime, Anywhere

Managing site compliance with the many complex EPA programs that affect your business—from the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts to TSCA, EPCRA, CERLCA, and more—is a major challenge. If you’re new to the field or need an update on changing EPA rules, the Complete Environmental Regulations Online Course will help you quickly build in-depth expertise.

Or, check out the latest individual EPA compliance training options here:

Clean Air Act Regulations Online
TSCA Regulations Online
New! Clean Water Act & SDWA Regulations Online
Just Launched! Superfund and Right-to-Know Act Regulations Online

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: Act, Air, Clean, Clean Water Act, EPA, fines and penalties, RCRA

Find a Post

Search for:

Compliance Topics

Compliance Archives

Lion's course was superior to others I have taken in the past. Very clear in the presentation and the examples helped to explain the content presented.

George Bersik

Hazardous Waste Professional

More thorough than a class I attended last year through another company.

Troy Yonkers

HSES Representative

The instructor was very patient and engaging - willing to answer and help explain subject matter.

Misty Filipp

Material Control Superintendent

The exercises in the DOT hazardous materials management course are especially helpful in evaluating your understanding of course information.

Morgan Bliss

Principal Industrial Hygienist

Lion is at the top of the industry in compliance training. Course content and structure are updated frequently to make annual re-training enjoyable. I like that Lion has experts that I can contact for 1 year after the training.

Caroline Froning

Plant Chemist

Lion does a great job summarizing and communicating complicated EH&S-related regulations.

Michele Irmen

Sr. Environmental Engineer

Having the tutorial buttons for additional information was extremely beneficial.

Sharon Ziemek

EHS Manager

The instructor took a rather drab set of topics and brought them to life with realistic real-life examples.

Tom Berndt

HSE Coordinator

This was the 1st instructor that has made the topic actually enjoyable and easy to follow and understand. Far better than the "other" training providers our company has attended!

Lori Hardy

Process & Resource Administrator

Excellent class, super instructor, very easy to follow. No rushing through material. Would like to take his class again.

Lawrence Patterson

EH&S Facility Maintenance & Security Manager

Download Our Latest Whitepaper

Look beyond the annual "Top 10 List" to see specifics about the most cited OSHA health & safety Standards and the individual regulations that tripped up employers the most last year.

Download

By submitting your phone number, you agree to receive recurring marketing and training text messages. Consent to receive text messages is not required for any purchases. Text STOP at any time to cancel. Message and data rates may apply. View our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.