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The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a cease and desist administrative order to PGI Operating, LLC of Sweetwater, Texas, for violations of the federal Clean Water Act.

On April 8, 2009, an EPA inspection of the company’s oil field production facility in Wichita County, Texas, found an unauthorized discharge of oil field brine generated by production activities to a tributary of Wolf Creek and ultimately to Wolf Creek. The inspection also revealed that water located at the discharge point of entry into the tributary was contaminated from brine discharges and salts and extensive salt staining was observed in the tributary and Wolf Creek.

Based on these findings, PGI Operating, LLC has been ordered to cease all discharges of pollutants from the facility, remove all brine and contaminated soils from the facility and the tributary as well as Wolf Creek, and within 30 days provide written certification to EPA that these activities have been completed.

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The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in cooperation with the City of Donna, the Donna Irrigation District, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the Texas Department of State Health Services, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, have been removing contaminated fish from the Donna Reservoir and Canal system. Edible sized fish in the Donna Canal are contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, and a ban is in place on possessing fish from the reservoir and canals. PCBs are toxic to humans and wildlife. The contaminated fish are the major dietary source of PCB exposure as PCBs are stored in fish tissue, and humans can accumulate PCBs in their bodies over time. Please remember, do not eat any fish that have been caught in the Donna Reservoir & Canal System.

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The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in coordination with the State of Louisiana, has issued a Cease and Desist Administrative Order to the City of Opelousas, Louisiana, ordering the city to immediately stop discharging raw sewage into Bayou Callehan.

The unauthorized discharge, located behind property located at 3406 Ashwood Drive, Opelousas, Louisiana, has occurred since approximately January 28, 2009.

On January 28, 2009, following a citizens’s complaint, the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals-Office of Public Health (OPH), conducted an inspection which confirmed that a sewer force main was broken and discharging raw sewage into Bayou Callehan. The sewer force main was damaged during a rainstorm when debris flowing down the bayou collided with the main, causing it to break and leak.

On April 1, 2009, and April 3, 2009, OPH conducted subsequent inspections and determined that the force main had not yet been repaired.

Based on these findings, EPA has ordered the City of Opelousas to immediately stop discharging raw sewage into Bayou Callehan and within 15 days take whatever corrective action is necessary to eliminate and prevent recurrence of the discharge.

The City of Opelousas has also been ordered to submit a written report to EPA within 20 days detailing the specific actions taken to effectively cease and desist the ongoing unauthorized discharge.

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The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a cease and desist administrative order to Petco Petroleum Corporation of Hinsdale, Illinois, for violations of the federal Clean Water Act.

On March 26, 2009, an EPA inspection of the company’s oil field production facility in Creek County, Oklahoma, found an unauthorized discharge of oil field brine from the facility to a tributary of the Cimarron River. The inspection also revealed that water located at the discharge point of entry into the tributary was contaminated from brine discharges and salts.

Based on these findings, Petco Petroleum Corporation has been ordered to cease all discharges of pollutants from the facility, remove all brine and contaminated soils from the flow path between the facility and the tributary, and within 30 days provide written certification to EPA that these activities have been completed.

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The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a cease and desist administrative order to Skull Creek Oil and Gas Company in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, for violations of the federal Clean Water Act.

On March 24, 2009, an EPA inspection of the company’s oil field production facility in Osage County, Oklahoma, found an unauthorized discharge of oil field brine from the facility to Hulah Lake. The inspection also revealed that water located at the discharge point of entry into Hulah Lake was contaminated from brine discharges and salts.

Based on these findings, Skull Creek Oil and Gas Company has been ordered to cease all discharges of pollutants from the facility, remove all brine and contaminated soils from the flow path located between the facility and Hulah Lake, and within 30 days provide written certification to EPA that these activities have been completed.

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The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has fined Petco Petroleum Corp. of Hinsdale, Illinois, $1,000 for violating federal Spill Prevention, Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) regulations outlined under the Clean Water Act. A federal inspection of an oil production facility located on Hill Jones Lease Road, Drumwright, Creek County, Oklahoma, on February 6, 2009, written procedures developed for the facility were not followed, and accumulated oil on rainwater was not removed and returned to storage or disposed of properly. The inspection also found excessive vegetation, walls of the containment systems were slightly eroded or had low areas, and visual inspection of containers, foundation and supports were not conducted periodically for deterioration and maintenance needs. As part of an Expedited Settlement Agreement with EPA, the facility has certified that all identified deficiencies have been corrected.

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The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has added the Attebury Grain Storage Facility to the National Priorities List of Superfund sites, EPA and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) announced today.

The Attebury Grain Storage Facility, located in downtown Happy, Texas, is the site of a plume of contaminated ground water caused by carbon tetrachloride and other solvents in concentrations above safe drinking water maximum contamination levels. The ground water contamination extends off the grain storage property to several public and private water wells.

“Adding this site to the Superfund list makes federal dollars available, allowing EPA and TCEQ to speed cleanup and meet the agencies’ commitment to protecting public health and environment,” said Acting EPA Regional Administrator Larry Starfield. “EPA and TCEQ are committed to work together to clean up this site quickly and efficiently.”

“Protection of groundwater is one of TCEQ’s top priorities, and we are pleased to team with EPA to remediate this site quickly,” said TCEQ Chairman Buddy Garcia.

The contaminated ground water plume is attributed to the use of carbon tetrachloride to extinguish a fire when the grain storage facility burned in 1962. TCEQ conducted a site inspection in May 2007 and samples taken showed a plume of contamination approximately one-half-mile wide and one-half-mile long in the Ogallala Aquifer, although the extent has not been fully characterized.

In 1991, the City of Happy closed municipal Well No. 3 due to the presence of carbon tetrachloride above safe drinking water maximum contamination levels. In September 2006, TCEQ installed a filtration system on one private well that had contaminants above safe levels. The remaining private well owners were notified by TCEQ of the ground water contamination discovered in their wells and are currently connected to the municipal water supply.

The Attebury Grain Storage Facility site was proposed to the Superfund list in March 2008. Other sites added to the national cleanup list include the following: Raleigh Street Dump, Tampa, Florida; Arkla Terra Property, Thonotosassa, Florida; U.S. Smelter and Lead Refinery, Inc., East Chicago, Indiana; Fort Detrick Area B Ground Water, Frederick, Maryland; Behr Dayton Thermal System VOC Plume, Dayton, Ohio; New Carlisle Landfill, New Carlisle, Ohio; BoRit Asbestos, Ambler, Pennsylvania; and Barite Hill/Nevada Goldfields, McCormick, South Carolina.

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Calumet Shreveport, LLC. has agreed to pay $230,000 to resolve Clean Air Act violations at its Midway Street Lubricants facility located in Shreveport, Louisiana, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today.

On October 30, 2008, an accidental release and fire occurred at the facility’s sour water tank while vacuum trucks were removing residual oil from an open man way. The fire produced thick black smoke for two hours. Because of the fire, a federal inspection was conducted November 18-21, 2008, during which EPA identified the violations referenced in today’s settlement. EPA and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) worked together in partnership in responding to the incident and in developing the enforcement response to this incident.

“EPA will continue to vigorously enforce our nation’s environmental laws through a strong enforcement program,” said John Blevins, EPA Region 6 Compliance Assurance and Enforcement Division Director. “When companies fail to follow the rules, immediate action will be taken to ensure compliance with the law.”

The law requires owners and operators of facilities that produce, process, handle or store hazardous substances to prevent accidental releases. The settlement addresses the company’s noncompliance by failing to prevent the release and fire, and failure to follow its policy requiring sources of ignition to be removed from the vicinity of a tank before emptying or venting. The inspection also found that the company failed to implement safe work practices and employees did not have vapor monitoring equipment and lacked proper personal protective equipment.

In addition to the fine, Calumet has agreed to comply with recommendations in the November 24, 2004, and January 16, 2008, Audit Reports prepared for the company by Process Safety & Reliability Group, Inc. The company must certify by October 30, 2009, that the Audit Reports recommendations have been fully addressed and implemented.

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The Environmental Protection Agency has awarded $103,545 to Oklahoma’s Inter-Tribal Environmental Council (ITEC) Cherokee Nation to assist in cleaning up hazardous waste sites and restoring lands for public reuse through EPA’s Superfund program. The grant will support activities such as National Priority List (NPL) program site management assistance, preliminary assessments and site inspections as well as reviewing technical reports, attending public meetings, preparation of NPL packages, and ensuring that remedial activities are completed. Additional support activities will include internal program management, planning, financial administration, procurement, contracting, training, and reporting services.