In our February 14, 2022, blog, we shared the results of the Environmental Protection Agency’s enforcement for the previous calendar year, as well as, their initiatives going forward. Below, we look at some recently settled cases. These cases include seven-figure fines and potential jail time for the defendants.
$3 Million Fine and Land Transfer
Cleveland-Cliffs, Inc., the owner of an Indiana steel mill (Burns Harbor Steel Mill) has agreed to pay $3 million and perform upgrades at the facility to prevent future unauthorized cyanide and ammonia releases.
A February 14, 2022 press release from the United States Department of Justice (USDOJ) provides details. The press release states, “The complaint filed with the settlement alleges that Cleveland-Cliffs exceeded discharge pollution limits for cyanide and ammonia; failed to properly report those cyanide and ammonia releases under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA), and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA); and violated other Clean Water Act and permit terms.”
The incident occurred in August of 2019 when the facilities closed loop air scrubber water recycle system on the blast furnace failed. The facility then pumped and used large volumes of water from Lake Michigan. This water, contaminated with cyanide and ammonia nitrogen, was discharged resulting in a fish kill in the East Branch of the Little Calumet River.
The company will also have to pay the U.S. and the state of Indiana $1.5 million each and transfer 127 acres of land abutting the Indiana Dunes National Park to a land trust organization for permanent conservation protection.
Maintaining Environmental compliance requires constant attention (image purchased from Shutterstock).
Proposition 65 Violations
An ongoing release of methane resulted in legal action, under California’s Proposition 65. Southern California Gas Co. settled a lawsuit filed by the Center for Environmental Health for claims alleging violations of California’s Proposition 65.
According to court documents, “This Consent Judgment is entered into… by Plaintiffs …and Southern California Gas Company (“Settling Defendant”) to settle Proposition 65 claims asserted by Prop 65 Plaintiffs against Settling Defendant…in the matter Southern California Gas Leak Cases…”
SoCalGas spokesperson Christine Detz told the Southern California Record, “SoCalGas entered into an agreement to settle claims alleging violations of Proposition 65 related to the 2015 Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility leak, pending approval by the court.” The natural gas leak lasted 110 days releasing 109,000 metric tons of methane and other chemicals including benzene.
The settlement includes
- $1.55 million payment to the plaintiffs
- Emission Reduction Measures
- Fenceline Monitoring for benzene
- Electronic (text or email) messages to the community (who have opted to receive messages), if there are exceedances of agreed-upon standards (and a “warning” of exceedances on their website).
Under the agreement, SoCalGas will reduce emissions at the facility by converting or replacing its Aliso Canyon onsite fleet of ATVs with zero-emission vehicles within 12 months of the settlement’s effective date.
Conspiracy and False Statements
One of the first environmental projects I worked on (decades ago) was to set up an automatic sampler in a sewer and collect hourly discrete samples of the wastewater from a metal drum refurbishing plant. The local Publicly-Owned Treatment Works was trying to find out why their influent pH was so unusual. Following our sampling, they had their answer.
A similar issue, high pH, from a Seattle barrel reconditioning company, was recently settled.
The violating facility in Seattle was not a one-off or simple oversight. Rather, according to the USDOJ, the company’s plant manager pleaded guilty to conspiracy and making false statements to the USEPA.
The first incident occurred in 2013 when according to the USDOJ, “King County conducted covert monitoring of Seattle Barrel, and discovered the company was illegally dumping effluent with a pH above 12 in violation of its permit. King County fined the company $55,250, but later agreed to reduce the fine when Seattle Barrel installed a pretreatment system for its wastewater.”
Then in 2018-2019, “…additional covert monitoring by the EPA inspectors revealed that Seattle Barrel was continuing to routinely dump wastewater with a pH above 12 into the sewer system despite telling local regulators that no industrial wastewater was being discharged. Agents then installed real-time monitoring equipment that allowed them to determine when the dumping was taking place and obtained a search warrant.”
Following the execution of a search warrant, agents “…discovered a portable pump on the floor near the tank of caustic solution. They then discovered that the pump was being used to pump the caustic solution to a nearby hidden drain that had never been disclosed to King County. The drain led directly to the sewer system.”
The plant manager faces up to five years in prison for each of the two counts to which he pled guilty. However, under the plea agreement, prosecutors will recommend his sentence to be no more than a year and a day in prison.
Further, after a three-week trial, the owner of the facility was convicted of the following:
- Conspiracy
- 29 violations of the Clean Water Act for discharging pollutants to the sewer
- Four counts of submission of False Clean Water Act Certifications
- Making a false statement to special agents of the EPA
The owner faces up to five years in prison on the conspiracy and false statement counts and up to three years in prison for each violation of the Clean Water Act.
Experienced Assistance
Willfully ignoring environmental regulations will not win you any favor in the public eye or the courtroom. More often than not, what we have observed with respect to environmental violations is an oversight or unfamiliarity of a particular regulation and its application at a facility. The latter of the two may be addressed by conducting regular environmental compliance assessments.
If you need help with an environmental issue, including an environmental compliance assessment, we can help. Put our team of experienced environmental professionals to work for you. If you would like to start with an initial conversation, contact Jeffrey Bolin, M.S. at 248-932-0228, Ext. 125.
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