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Enforcement Action Summary FY 2007 - May 2007
Week of May 7, 2007
Technician at Oil Refinery Pleads Guilty to Making False Statements in Monitoring Reports; United States v. David L. Pacholski
On May 4, 2007, David L. Pacholski pled guilty to a one-count information charging him with making false statements in connection with his employment at the BP refinery in Oregon, Ohio.
Pursuant to the Clean Air Act, BP is required to check its refinery in Oregon, Ohio for vapor leaks. Vapor leaks can occur in valves, pumps, compressors and other piping connections. Failure to find these leaks may cause the emission of volatile organic chemicals and other hazardous substances.
Pacholski worked at the BP refinery in Oregon, Ohio and was employed to check components at the refinery for leaks. As part of checking for leaks Pacholski would also file his monitoring data and sign a certification that the monitoring was conducted properly.
The information charged that between June 18, 2003, and June 20, 2003, Pacholski submitted false monitoring data and certifications. The monitoring data and certifications were false because Pacholski did not check the refinery for leaks on those days.
This case was investigated, in a joint investigation, by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S. EPA CID, all members of the Northwest Ohio Environmental Crimes Task Force.
Contact: Brad Beeson (440) 250-1761
7th Circuit to hear oral argument in Sierra Club et al. v. U.S. EPA on PSD permit appeal
On May 31, 2007, at 9:30 a.m., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit will hear oral argument in the PSD permit appeal of Sierra Club, the American Bottom Conservancy, American Lung Association of Metropolitan Chicago, Health and Environmental Justice-St. Louis, Lake County Conservation Alliance, and Valley Watch, Petitioners, v. United States Environmental Protection Agency, Respondent, and Prairie State Generating Company, LLC, Intervenor-Respondent. The issues on appeal are 1) Did the Environmental Appeals Board (EAB) reasonably construe the CAA and the record in this case when it ruled that the Illinois EPA was not required to evaluate, as part of the BACT analysis for the Prairie State Generating Company (Prairie State) PSD permit, the energy, environmental and economic impacts of importing low-sulfur coal to fuel a proposed electricity generating plant, where this control option would fundamentally change the design of the facility proposed by Prairie State to use a 30-year on-site supply of coal; and 2) Did the EAB reasonably find that the proposed facility would not contribute to violation of the recently-adopted 8-hour ozone NAAQS in the neighboring St. Louis air quality area, and that Illinois EPA’s use of the 1-hour ozone modeling as a surrogate for the newer 8-hour standard was not inappropriate.
On August 24, 2006, the EAB denied Petitioners’ request for review of a PSD permit issued to Prairie State for construction of a proposed 1500-megawatt pulverized coal-fuel powered electricity generating plant to be located in Washington County, Illinois. The facility would be located at the mouth of a new mine, also developed by Prairie State, which would provide the principal source of coal fuel used at the facility. Petitioner originally challenged the permit on 16 grounds, but is appealing only the above-mentioned two issues.
Contact: Susan Tennenbaum, 312-886-0273; Constantine Blathrus, 312-886-0671
Week of May 14, 2007
EPA Region 5 Signs a Consent Agreement and Final Order with Flavorchem Corporation in Downers Grove, Illinois. On May 16, 2007, EPA, Region 5, and Flavorchem Corporation (Flavorchem) entered into a Consent Agreement and Final Order simultaneously commencing and concluding an action for violations of the Clean Air Act at Flavorchem’s manufacturing plant in Downers Grove, DuPage County, Illinois. Flavorchem produces flavoring extracts, syrups and food colorings at its facility. Flavorchem has operated several emission sources of volatile organic compounds including a north wet mix area and coffee press, a south wet mix area and cocoa press, a spray dryer, a dry mix room with small mixers, a dry mix room with a mega-mixer, a fragrance room, a packaging room, a bean dryer and vanilla concentrator at the facility. DuPage County was designated as a severe nonattainment area for the 1-hour ozone standard from 1992 until EPA designated DuPage County as a moderate nonattainment area for the 8-hour ozone standard effective June 15, 2004 and revoked the 1-hour ozone standard effective June 15, 2005. The CAFO alleges that Flavorchem failed to obtain construction and operating permits for the emission sources at its facility in violation of the Illinois State Implementation Plan, failed to submit a Title V permit application, and operated without a Title V operating permit in violation of Sections 502 and 503 of the Act, 42 U.S.C. 7661a and 7661b. Flavorchem submitted a complete permit application to Illinois EPA on October 10, 2006 and will be in full compliance with the permitting requirements upon issuance of a permit. EPA calculated a preliminary civil penalty of $125,042 for these violations and notified Flavorchem of this amount in a pre-filing and opportunity to confer letter. In consideration of the facts of this case, Flavorchem’s cooperation with U.S. EPA and Flavorchem’s good faith efforts to comply, EPA determined and Flavorchem agreed that the appropriate civil penalty to settle this action is $75,025.
Contact: Christine Liszewski, primary contact 312/886-4670; Tanya Hurlburt, additional contact 312/353-4145)
U.S. EPA enters into Administrative Order on Consent (AOC) with Raybestos Products Company for removal work in Reach 4 of Shelly Ditch in Crawfordsville, Indiana.
On February 22, 2007, the U.S. EPA signed an Administrative Order on Consent with Raybestos. Pursuant to the terms of the AOC, the Respondent agreed to remove contaminated sediment from Reach 4 of Shelly Ditch and to pay oversight costs incurred by the U.S. EPA at the Site. Though signed in February 2007, the AOC was not effective until May 15, 2007, as the AOC was part of a negotiated settlement that also included a Consent Decree that addressed past costs incurred at Shelly Ditch and Raybestos’ potential liability at Sugar Creek. It was agreed that the effective date of the AOC would be delayed until the motion for entry was filed. The Department of Justice has filed a motion for entry regarding the Consent Decree and the motion is pending before the court.
The Shelly Ditch is an intermittent stream that accepts surface runoff that discharges into Sugar Creek. Sugar Creek is designated as a “full-body contact” water body and as an “expected use” stream by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. Three culverts or outfalls located on the west perimeter of the Raybestos’ facility at 1204 Darlington Avenue in Crawfordsville, Indiana empty into Shelly Ditch. The facility, established in 1951, manufactures friction plates for automatic transmissions. During its operation, there was a release of PCBs from the Raybestos facility into Shelly Ditch. On February 28, 1997, the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) and Raybestos entered into an agreement concerning the investigation and cleanup of PCBs in Shelly Ditch. However, IDEM was unable to reach an agreement with Raybestos on a cleanup for the Ditch. IDEM then referred the matter to U.S. EPA. On December 6, 2000, U.S. EPA issued a unilateral administrative order (UAO) to Raybestos to remove PCBs over 10 ppm from Reaches 1 to 3 of the Ditch. Reaches 4 and 5 were not addressed by the UAO. Raybestos complied with the UAO and completed the work in July 2003.
In May 2003, U.S. EPA and Raybestos entered into negotiations to address Raybestos’ potential liability for the Sugar Creek Remedial Site, which included Reaches 4 and 5 of Shelly Ditch. During this time, Raybestos conducted sampling in Reaches 4 and 5, as well Sugar Creek, to determine the extent and levels of PCB and lead contamination in the two Reaches and the impact, if any, of the Reaches on Sugar Creek.
Primary contact: Robert Smith, ORC, (312) 886-0765.
Region 5 Files a Consent Agreement and Final Order Commencing and Concluding A Proceeding with Star Distributors Incorporated
Region 5 initiated prefiling discussions on this matter in March, 2007. The proposed penalty was $4,550. OnJune 14, 2007, Region 5 filed a Consent Agreement and Final Order Commencing and Concluding a Proceeding with the Respondent to settle violations of Section 12(a)(1)(A)of FIFRA, 7 U.S.C. §136j(a)(1)(A). Specifically, the Respondent distributed or sold an unregistered pesticide, Power Moth Balls. During settlement discussions, the Respondent agreed to pay a civil penalty of $3,640.
Contact: Nidhi O’Meara, primary contact 312/886-0568; Terry Bonace, additional contact 312/886-3387.
Region 5 Files a Consent Agreement and Final Order Commencing and Concluding A Proceeding with W.J. Hagerty & Sons Ltd, Inc.
Region 5 initiated prefiling discussions on this matter in March, 2007. The proposed penalty was $13,650. On June 10, 2007,Region 5 filed a Consent Agreement and Final Order Commencing and Concluding a Proceeding with the Respondent to settle violations of Section 12(a)(1)(A)of FIFRA, 7 U.S.C. §136j(a)(1)(A). Specifically, the Respondent distributed or sold an unregistered pesticide, Hagerty Anti-Mite. During settlement discussions, the Respondent agreed to pay a civil penalty of $10,920.
Contact: Nidhi O’Meara, primary contact 312/886-0568; Terry Bonace, additional contact 312/886-3387.
Week of May 21, 2007
Region 5 Settles Clean Air Act Matter with CertainTeed Corporation
On May 23, 2007, Region 5 filed a Consent Agreement and Final Order (CAFO) settling Clean Air Act (CAA) violations by CertainTeed Corporation. The violations were voluntarily disclosed by CertainTeed to EPA in letters dated March 25, 2004 and December 14, 2004. In July 2005, EPA determined that CertainTeed had not met several of the criteria in EPA’s Incentives for Self-Policing: Discovery, Disclosure, Correction and Prevention of Violations (EPA Audit Policy), so no penalty reduction was warranted. At that time, EPA also informed CertainTeed that the Agency intended to file an enforcement action. In a complaint filed on August 29, 2006, EPA alleged that CertainTeed was operating two pieces of equipment without a permit and was operating a third piece of equipment in violation of the facility’s CAA Title V permit. Two of the violations lasted for a period of several years. After the complaint was filed, CertainTeed submitted written and verbal information to EPA which allowed the Agency to revisit and reverse its earlier determination regarding the application of the EPA Audit Policy. Ultimately, EPA determined that CertainTeed satisfied eight of the nine Audit Policy criteria, resulting in a 75% reduction in the proposed penalty. EPA also reduced the penalty based on the seriousness of the violation, and CertainTeed’s good faith efforts to comply. The CAFO settles the matter for a total of $13,750, plus the performance of a supplemental environmental project costing at least $41,250 (the complaint proposed a penalty of $272,140). The supplemental environmental project consists of CertainTeed permanently retiring SO2 or NOX emission credits.
Contacts: Catherine Garypie, Associate Regional Counsel 312-886-5825; Charmagne Ackerman, Environmental Engineer, 312-886-0448
United States Lodges Consent Decree for CERCLA Cost Recovery for the Lakeland Disposal Site, Kosciusko County , MI . On May 21, 2007, the U.S. Department of Justice, on behalf of U.S. EPA Region 5, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana a civil Consent Decree regarding the Lakeland Disposal Superfund Site in Kosciusko County, Michigan. Under the decree, General Motors Inc., Da-Lite Screen Company, Inc., Morton International Owens-Illinois, Inc., Robertshaw Controls Company, Warsaw Black Oxide Inc., United Technologies Corp., CTS Corp., Dalton Corp., Johnson Controls, Inc., Kosciusko County, Indiana, Leco Corp., McGill Manufacturing Company Inc., R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company, and Uniroyal, Inc., will reimburse U.S. EPA for past CERCLA response costs, and will pay future response costs. In a related action with respect to the Site, a separate Consent Decree was also lodged on May 21, 2007, fully resolving violations alleged in the related civil action against Mr. David Lindsey, former owner and operator of the Site.
The Lakeland Disposal Superfund Site is a former landfill occupying approximately 39 acres approximately 3-1/2 miles northwest of Claypool, Indiana. Sloan Ditch, an agricultural drainage ditch, forms the boundary of the eastern and northern edges of the Site. Wooded areas are located east of the landfill along Sloan Ditch and the adjacent wetlands. Several wetland areas exist along Sloan Ditch and on the landfill itself.
At least 18,000 drums of waste materials were deposited at the Site. In addition, approximately 8,900 tons of plating sludge and more than 2 million gallons of plating waste containing various hydroxide sludges of aluminum, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, nickel, tin, selenium, and zinc were disposed of on the Site. Other wastes reportedly disposed of there include spent filter sand, wastewater treatment sludge containing copper, nickel and chromium, sewage sludge, and cyanide, zinc and chrome plating liquids. The Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study (RI/FS), Pre-Design Study for the Lakeland Site was conducted by four parties: Dana Corporation, General Motors Corporation, United Technologies Automotive Inc., and Warsaw Black Oxide, Inc..
The remedial design and remedial action (RD/RA) work was performed by five parties: Dana, Eaton, General Motors Corporation, UTA, and Warsaw Black Oxide, pursuant to a Unilateral Administrative Order (UAO). The UAO respondents have completed the RD/RA work satisfactorily, and the Site is currently in Operation and Maintenance. U.S. EPA approved the RI/FS and has overseen the RD/RA work conducted by the ACO and UAO Parties. U.S. EPA completed the Site’s CERCLA Section 121 (c) Five Year Remedy Review on August 14, 2005.
The Consent Decree calls for the payment of $1,391,195.02 in past costs and payment of U.S. EPA’s future costs. U.S. EPA will receive $1,125,000.00 to be deposited in a Lakeland Special Account within the U.S. EPA Hazardous Substances Superfund to be retained and used to conduct or finance response actions at the Site .
ORC Contact: Luis Oviedo, 312/353-9538; Superfund Division Contact: Scott Hansen, 312/886-1999.
On May 18, 2007 Region 5 filed a Consent Agreement and Final Order to commence and conclude case against Circom, Inc., Bensenville, Illinois
On May 18, 2007, Region 5 filed a Consent Agreement and Final Order (CAFO) commencing and concluding an administrative penalty action against Circom, Inc. (Circom), for violations of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986 (EPCRA), 42 U.S.C. §11001, et seq., at its facility in Bensenville, Illinois. The CAFO requires Circom to pay a penalty of $1397. Circom failed to submit to the Administrator of U.S. EPA and to Illinois a Form R for lead for the calendar year 2005 by July 1, 2006. After an inspection of the facility by U.S. EPA, Circom came into compliance with the disclosure rule. This will result in accurate records of the quantity of lead, a toxic chemical of special concern, being used by the facility. The proposed penalty in this matter was $6,500. The penalty was mitigated, pursuant to the penalty policy, in consideration of the Respondent’s filing of form R for 2005 within 51 days of its due date, its cooperation and, and the fact the company is a small business.
Contact Michael Berman, 312-886-6837.
U.S. EPA reaches administrative settlement under TSCA for released substances .
Respondent, Clean Harbors, operates a facility that is permitted under TSCA to store, disassemble and decontaminate PCB items by solvent washing. Storm water from the facility discharges into a sewer line which leads into Strong Brook. Strong Brook is about 0.6 miles long and empties into the Ashtabula River at a point called Jack’s Marine Slip. On March 20, 2007, U.S. EPA was notified that the Respondent may have improperly stored and/or disposed of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and that PCBs may have migrated off the facility into Strong Brook and the Ashtabula River. Based on this information, the U.S. EPA conducted an inspection of the facility on March 28, 2007, which included the taking of several soil samples on the facility. The samples showed levels of PCBs from 2.82 parts per million (ppm) to 926 ppm on the facility.
While U.S. EPA was inspecting the facility, the Respondent stopped the discharge and run-off of water into the sewer system which empties into Strong Brook. The Respondent has and is collecting this water for treatment off-site. In addition, the Respondent installed a boom and silt curtain in Jack’s Marine Slip to contain the spread of any PCBs and/or oil that could be migrating down Strong Brook into Jack’s Marine Slip. U.S. EPA and Respondent have entered into a Consent Agreement and Final Order (CAFO) which requires the Respondent to conduct an investigation of the extent of PCBs on its facility and remediate the PCBs pursuant to EPAs Polychlorinated Biphenyl (PCB) Site Revitalization Guidance Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), commonly referred to as EPA’s PCB Spill Policy. In addition, the Respondent will conduct an assessment of the sewer system and Strong Brook to determine the extent of PCB contamination and will maintain, inspect and repair as necessary the oil boom and silt curtain that Respondent has placed in the Marine Slip area to control the release of PCBs in the River. The CAFO reserves the right of U.S. EPA to seek penalties for violations of TSCA at a later date.
Contact: Peter Felitti, ORC, (312) 886-5114
Week of May 28, 2007
Federal District Court enters CERCLA cost recovery Consent Decree
On May 16, 2007, United States District Court Judge Suzanne B. Conlon entered the consent decree in United States of America v. Allied Waste Industries, Inc., f/k/a/ Browning Ferris Industries, Inc., and Waste Management of Illinois, Inc., Civil Action Docket No. 06-C-5245. This consent decree is for a past cost recovery settlement for the Tri-County/Elgin Landfill Superfund Site in Kane County, Illinois (the “Site”), and resolves the remaining claims of the United States for costs incurred in taking remedial response actions at the Site. The settling defendants are Allied Waste Industries, Inc., (f/k/a/ Browning Ferris Industries of Illinois (“BFI”))(“Allied”) (owner of part of the Elgin Landfill portion of the Site); and Waste Management of Illinois, Inc. (“WMII”) (owner of the Elgin-Wayne Disposal part of the Tri-County Landfill portion of the Site). Allied and WMII are also past owners and operators at the Site.
As of November 30, 2006, the unrecovered Site costs totaled $1,760,729.14, with prejudgment interest on that amount of $593,974.57 (accrued since the date of demand made February 27, 1998), for a total of $2,354,703.71. Under the consent decree, the settling defendants will reimburse $2,120,000.00 in past response costs and prejudgment interest incurred by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and the United States Department of Justice (“DOJ”). This represents a recovery of 90% of EPA’s and U.S. DOJ’s costs with prejudgment interest. Allied and WMII will pay future oversight costs, and will continue to perform remedial action work at the Site, under the terms of the final unilateral administrative orders issued to each on November 3, 1999, under authority of 42 U.S.C. § 9606 (“UAOs”). This settlement concludes EPA’s cost recovery efforts for the Site.
U.S. DOJ initiated this litigation by filing a complaint on September 27, 2006, to recover the remaining unreimbursed response costs incurred by EPA in connection with the Site.
Contact: Jeffrey A. Cahn, primary contact 312-886-6670; John Fagiolo, additional contact 312-886-0800.
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act Consent Decree Entered 5/25/2007 in U.S. v. Masterwear Corp., et al.
On May 25, 2007, Judge John Daniel Tinder of the Southern District of Indiana, Indianapolis Division, signed an order entering a consent decree in the case of U.S. v. Masterwear Corp., et al, No. 1:05-cv-00373-JDT-WTL.
Masterwear was a former industrial laundry and dry cleaning business that operated in downtown Martinsville, Indiana. U.S. EPA conducted a site inspection on four separate dates from late 2003 to early 2004 and found perchloroethylene vapors in homes and businesses in the area that exceeded the Indiana Department of Environmental Management sub-chronic action level. On April 20, 2004, U.S. EPA issued a Unilateral Administrative Order (“UAO”) pursuant to Section 106 of CERCLA to William Cure and Jim Reed to conduct a removal action at the Masterwear Site. DOJ, on behalf of U.S. EPA, later filed a complaint for cost recovery against Masterwear Corp., William and Elizabeth Cure, and Jim and Linda Lou Mull Reed pursuant to Section 107 of CERCLA.
Per the consent decree, the Settling Defendants, through their insurance companies, will continue conducting the removal action as required by the UAO and will pay $380,000 to reimburse U.S. EPA for past response costs and some future response costs for the removal action.
Primary contact is Mark Koller, Associate Regional Counsel, (312) 353-2591; secondary contact is Ken Theisen, On-Scene Coordinator, (312) 886-1959. Department of Justice contact is Tom Benson, (202) 514-5261.
Consent Agreement and Final Order executed in EPCRA Administrative Action
On May 29, 2007, the Regional Administrator executed a Consent Agreement and Final Order (CAFO) in an enforcement action, resolving an Administrative Complaint filed against Hospital Laundry Services (HLS), under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA). The CAFO provides for payment of a $41,242 civil penalty by Respondent for violations of Section 312 of EPCRA, 42 U.S.C. § 11022.
Primary contact: Richard R. Wagner, ORC, (312) 886-7947.
Terre Haute, Indiana Business and its President Convicted for Environmental Crimes
On May 24, 2007, a federal jury in Indianapolis, Indiana, found Derrik Hagerman of Terre Haute, Indiana, and Wabash Environmental Technologies, LLC, guilty of ten felony counts of false statements under the Clean Water Act. Wabash was a waste water treatment facility in Terre Haute, Indiana that discharged to the Wabash River under a Clean Water Act permit. The indictment alleged that from on or about January 2004 and continuing to on or about October 2004, Hagerman and Wabash periodically reviewed bench sheets from Wabash’s lab listing analytical results for waste water discharge samples taken at Wabash for purposes of compliance with Wabash ’ s Clean Water Act permit that showed Wabash to be in violation of effluent limitations in its permit for Ammonia, BOD5, Copper, Zinc and Phenol. Hagerman and Wabash knowingly failed to report to the Indiana Department of Environmental Management lab results showing these violations, but instead reported results that were in compliance with Wabash’s Clean Water Act permit. As part of a scheme to conceal the false statements, Defendants Hagerman and Wabash knowingly created false bench sheets showing few if any violations, and purporting to be analytical results of waste water samples taken at Wabash for purposes of compliance with Wabash’s Clean Water Act permit. The criminal charges arose from a criminal investigation jointly undertaken by the Criminal Investigation Division of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, as part of the Indiana Inter-Agency Environmental Crime Task Force for the Southern District of Indiana.
Contact: David Mucha (312) 886-9032
Region 5 signs Consent Agreement and Final Order with Snappy Apple Farms, Inc.
On 05/22/2007, Region 5 signed a consent agreement and final order with Snappy Apple Farms, Inc. of Casnovia, Michigan, to settle violations of Section 312 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act of 1986, 42 U.S.C. § 11022. Section 312 of EPCRA, and its implementing regulations at 40 CFR Part 370, require the owner or operator of a facility, which is required by the Occupational Safety and Health Act to prepare or have available a material safety data sheet for a hazardous chemical, to submit to the state emergency response commission, appropriate local emergency planning committee and fire department with jurisdiction over the facility by March 1, 1988, and annually thereafter an Emergency and Hazardous Chemical Inventory Form. The form must contain the information required by Section 312(d) of EPCRA, covering all extremely hazardous chemicals present at the facility at any one time during the preceding year in amounts equal to or exceeding 5,000 pounds. The maximum quantity at any one time of anhydrous ammonia at the facility for the calendar years 2002-2004 is 8,000 pounds. Anhydrous ammonia is an extremely hazardous substance under EPCRA. The facility exceeded the reporting threshold by 16 times and the facility never submitted the Emergency and Hazardous Chemical Inventory Forms. Due to an inability-to-pay the full proposed penalty of $74,483.07 and other mitigating factors, Snappy Apple Farms will pay a penalty of $7,919 and will perform a Supplemental Environmental Project valued at $4,581. The SEP will consist of purchasing hazardous materials response equipment for the local fire department.
Primary contact: Mark Koller, (312) 353-2591. Secondary contact: James Entzminger, (312) 866-4062.
Region 5 signs a Consent Agreement and Final Order with Electronic Industries, Inc.
On May 29, 2007, Region 5 filed a Consent Agreement and Final Order with the Regional Hearing Clerk simultaneously commencing and concluding a Complaint against Electronic Industries, Incorporated, of Vadnais Heights, Minnesota. Region 5 alleges that Electronic Industries violated Section 313 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986 (EPCRA), 42 U.S.C. § 11023, and implementing regulations at 40 C.F.R. § 372.30, by failing to timely file a Form R for lead (CASRN 7439-92-1) and lead compounds it processed, manufactured, or otherwise used during calendar year 2004. In settlement, Electronic Industries will pay a civil penalty of $4,150.
Contacts: Brian Barwick, ORC, (312) 886-6620 and Terry Bonace, Waste, Pesticides, and Toxics Division, (312) 886-3387.
Region 5 signs a Consent Agreement and Final Order with APSCO, Inc.
On May 31, 2007, Region 5 filed a Consent Agreement and Final Order with the Regional Hearing Clerk simultaneously commencing and concluding a Complaint against APSCO, Incorporated, of Perry, Ohio. Region 5 alleges that APSCO violated Section 313 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986 (EPCRA), 42 U.S.C. § 42 U.S.C. § 11023, and implementing regulations at 40 C.F.R. § 372.30, by failing to timely file a Form R for lead (CASRN 7439-92-1) it processed during calendar year 2003. In settlement, APSCO will spend at least $200,000 on a supplemental environmental project designed to substantially reduce the amount of lead used in APSCO’s printed circuit board operations. In addition, APSCO will pay a civil penalty of $5,483.
Contacts: Brian Barwick, Office of Regional Counsel, (312) 886-6620 and Tom Crosetto, Waste, Pesticides, and Toxics Division, (312) 886-6294
Region 5 files Complaint/Consent Agreement and Final Order Settling Domestic Septage Application Recordkeeping Violations
Region 5 initiated this enforcement action on September 20, 2004. On 05/09/2007, Region 5 filed a Complaint/Consent Agreement and Final Order (CAFO) simultaneously instituting and settling an action against All Town and Country Septic, Inc. (All Town) of Norton, Ohio for alleged violations of the regulations promulgated at 40 C.F.R. Part 503. Region 5 alleged that All Town did not properly keep records of land application of domestic septage in violation of 40 C.F.R. Section 503.17(b)(4), (b)(5), (b)(7), and (b)(8). All Town will pay a $35,500 penalty.
Primary Contact: Mark Koller, (312) 353-2591; Secondary Contact: Valdis Aistars, (312) 886-0264.
On April 16, 2007 Region 5 filed a Consent Agreement and Final Order to commence and conclude case against BTW, Inc., Coon Rapids, Minnesota.
On April 16, 2007 Region 5 filed a Consent Agreement and Final Order (CAFO) commencing and concluding an administrative penalty action against BTW, Inc. (BTW) for violations of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986 (EPCRA), 42 U.S.C. §11001, et seq., at its facility in Coon Rapids, Minnesota. The CAFO required BTW to pay a penalty of $13,763. BTW made its payment on May 15, 2007. BTW failed to submit to U.S. EPA and to the State of Minnesota a Form R for lead for the calendar year 2004 by July 1, 2005. After an inspection of the facility by U.S. EPA, BTW came into compliance with the disclosure rule. This will result in accurate records of the quantity of lead, a toxic chemical of special concern, being used by the facility. The proposed penalty in this matter was $22,939. The penalty was mitigated, pursuant to the penalty policy, in consideration of the Respondent’s filing of form R for 2005 immediately after the site inspection, its cooperation, and its significant subsequent investments in reducing its lead solder usage (to the point where it wasn’t required to file a Form R for 2006).
Contact Thomas Krueger, Associate Regional Counsel, 312-886-6837; program contact, Terence Bonace, (312) 886-3387).