EPA announces summary of enforcement actions for Winter 2011

EPA announces summary of enforcement actions for Winter 2011

Kelly Huynh, EPA Compliance and Enforcement, 206-553-1679, huynh.kelly@epa.gov
Jeff Philips, EPA Public Affairs, 206-553-1465, philip.jeff@epa.gov

(Seattle – May 3, 2012) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) completed 35 enforcement actions from January 1 through March 31, 2012 to ensure individuals, businesses, and governments are complying with environmental regulations. The EPA’s compliance assistance programs help people understand and follow federal environmental laws. Enforcement deters those who might otherwise profit from violating the law and levels the playing field with environmentally compliant companies. Protecting human health and the environment is the ultimate objective.

Below is a summary table of EPA’s enforcement actions during the second quarter of federal fiscal year 2012 (January - March 2012). An important component of EPA’s enforcement activities, and a key way to deter misconduct, is to assess penalties for violations. For the cases where EPA assessed penalties, the penalty amount is listed in the table. EPA Region 10 assessed a total of $821,731 in penalties during the second quarter. Penalty amounts may vary depending on a variety of factors, such as the magnitude of the violation, how quickly the violations are corrected, and whether there are past violations. Compliance Orders direct the violator to bring their activities back into compliance with environmental laws, and do not include penalties.

January 1 - March 31, 2012

State	City of violation	Date issued/ filed	Respondent	Description of Alleged Violation	Penalty amount
AK	Anchorage	03/14/12	SGS North American, Inc.	Failure to comply with hazardous waste generator requirements. (RCRA)*	$1,500
AK	Fairbanks	03/12/12	Eielson Air Force Base	Failure to comply with universal waste management requirements. (RCRA)*	$45,700
ID	Jerome	03/16/12	Rite Stuff Foods, Inc.	Failure to comply with risk management program (RMP)* requirements for anhydrous ammonia.	$5,700
ID	Lapwai	03/15/12	Nez Perce Tribe Drinking Water Systems	Failure to comply with Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)* requirements for monitoring and reporting violations to customers and EPA at the North Lapwai, South Lapwai, and Kamiah water systems.	N/A (Administrative Order on Consent)
ID	Grand View	03/12/12	US Ecology Idaho, Inc.	Failure to submit timely Toxic Chemical Release Inventory (TRI) Reporting Forms for more than 20 chemicals, including mercury, lead, and PCBs. (EPCRA)*	$184,000
ID	Nezperce	03/06/12	Robert Branson	Failure to comply with EPA’s Federal Air Rules for Reservations (FARR)* resulting from agricultural burning above permitted levels.	$1,200
OR	Medford	03/29/12	NPK Industries, LLC	Failure to register three pesticides. (FIFRA)*	N/A (Stop Sale Order)
OR	Tigard	03/05/12	AG Specialties, LLC	Failure to properly label imported pesticides. (FIFRA)*	N/A (Stop Sale Order)
OR	Portland	02/28/12	Wilbur Ellis Company	Sale and distribution of misbranded pesticide products. (FIFRA)*	$50,320
OR	Nehalem	02/28/12	River End Dairy, LLC	Failures to comply with Clean Water Act (CWA)* permit requirements by discharging pollutants to waters of the United States.	$6,300
OR	Liberal	02/27/12	Sanders Wood Products, Inc.	Failures to properly manage PCBs, including failure to repair, replace, or contain leaking PCB transformers. (TSCA)*	$108,400
OR	Eugene	01/06/12	Forrest Paint Company	Failure to comply with risk management program (RMP)* requirements for propane.	$18,000
WA	Colville	03/29/12	Colville Post and Pole	Partial cost recovery ($5,000) for a removal action, based on the potentially responsible party’s (PRP's) ability to pay. (CERCLA)*	N/A (Cost Recovery)
WA	Seattle	03/26/12	U.S. Department of Commerce – National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Western Regional Center	Failure to comply with hazardous waste generator and universal waste requirements. (RCRA)*	$2,250
WA	Moses Lake	02/17/12	J.R. Simplot Company	Failure to properly label pesticides. (FIFRA)*	N/A (Stop Sale Order)
WA	Centralia	02/16/12	TransAlta Centralia Generation, LLC	Failure to comply with requirements for the proper use and disposal of electrical transformers containing PCBs. (TSCA)*	$28,500
WA	White Swan	02/13/12	Fort Simcoe Job Corps Center’s Drinking Water System	Failure to conduct required monitoring and report violations to customers and EPA. (SDWA)*	N/A (Compliance Order)
WA	Harrah	02/07/12	Hush & Hush, Inc., and C.I. Lovell, Inc.	Failure to comply with Clean Air Act requirements for handling demolition of asbestos materials and limiting fugitive air emissions. (CAA)*	$11,000
WA	Wapato	02/06/12	City of Wapato	Failure to comply with Clean Water Act requirements, primarily due to exceeding permit limits for ammonia. (CWA)*	$57,000
WA	Spokane	01/30/12	Spokane Tribe of Indians	Arsenic in drinking water above maximum contaminant levels at the Martha Boardman and Ford water systems. (SDWA)*	N/A (Administrative Order on Consent)
WA	Warden	01/17/12	Oregon Potato Company	Failure to report an ammonia release to the Washington Emergency Response Commission and the National Response Center. (EPCRA and CERCLA)*	$66,235
WA	Yakima	01/17/12	Yakama Tribal Gaming Corp dba Yakama Nation’s Legends Casino	Failure to discharge in compliance with a NPDES permit. (CWA)*	N/A (Compliance Order)
WA	Silverdale	01/11/12	U.S. Department of Navy – Naval Base Kitsap at Bangor	Failure to comply with underground storage tank requirements to detect or prevent releases to the environment. (RCRA)*	$160,756
WA	Wenatchee	01/11/12	Custom Apple Packers, Inc.	Failure to comply with risk management program (RMP)* requirements for anhydrous ammonia.	$69,480
AK WA	Greenacres Brewster Longview Kelso Castle Rock		City Service Valcon Triangle Shell/Exxon LLC Beachway Gas and Grocery and City Shop 13th Avenue Mini Mart, Rocky Point Market, and Kelso Longview Regional Airport Link’s Four Corners General Store	Failure to conduct tests or maintain documentation to detect or prevent releases to the environment. (UST)*	Total of $5,390 for violations at the named facilities.

*EPCRA – Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act

FARR – Federal Air Rules for Reservations

FIFRA – Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act

CWA – Clean Water Act

CAA – Clean Air Act

RCRA – Resource Conservation and Recovery Act

RMP – Risk Management Program

SDWA – Safe Drinking Water Act

TRI – Toxic Release Inventory

UST – Underground Storage Tank

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EPA fines three Big Island companies for failing to close cesspools

For Immediate Release: May 2, 2012
Contact:  Dean Higuchi, 808-541-2711, higuchi.dean@epa.gov       

                           
EPA fines three Big Island companies for failing to close cesspools
Companies to pay penalties totaling over $141,000 for violating ban

HONOLULU – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has resolved federal Safe Drinking Water Act cases against the Jazmin Family Trust, GLACS LLC and Hula Daddy Kona Coffee with fines totaling $141,200 for failing to close their large capacity cesspools on the Big Island.

“EPA remains steadfast in protecting Hawaii’s vital water resources,” said Jared Blumenfeld, EPA’s Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest. “Over 2,800 large cesspools have been closed, but an alarming 1,200 are still in use. We are working to shut these illegal cesspools down.”

The Jazmin Family Trust owns and operates the Kailua Vista Apartments in Kailua-Kona and received a penalty of $60,000 for continued operation of two large capacity cesspools at the apartment complex. The two cesspools will be closed when the apartment building is connected to a proposed extension of the Hawaii County sewer system, expected by October 2013.

EPA penalized GLACS LLC $68,000 for operation of ten large capacity cesspools, eight at the Pottery Terrace Commercial Properties and two at the Lenders Document Commercial Building in Kailua-Kona. GLACS LLC closed all of the cesspools in June 2011.  The company connected the Pottery Terrace properties to the local municipal sewer and installed a state-approved individual wastewater system at the Lenders Document building.

Hula Daddy Kona Coffee operates a visitor center and tasting room for a coffee plantation in Holualoa and received a penalty of $13,200 for installing a new cesspool after the April 5, 2000 ban on the construction of large capacity cesspools. The company built the facility and began operating the new cesspool in August 2008. In September 2010, an EPA inspection and investigation prompted the owners to install a state-approved septic system, closing the cesspool in December 2010.   

A large capacity cesspool discharges untreated sewage from multiple dwellings, or a non-residential location that serves 20 or more people per day. EPA regulations prohibited new large capacity cesspool construction after April 2000 and required closure of existing large cesspools as of April 2005.  The regulations do not apply to single-family homes connected to their own individual cesspools.

Cesspools, which are used more widely in Hawaii than any other state, discharge raw sewage into the ground, where disease-causing pathogens and other contaminants can pollute groundwater, streams and the ocean.  Large capacity cesspools are used by restaurants, hotels, office complexes, and multiple dwellings, such as duplexes, apartments and condominiums to dispose their sanitary waste.

For more information on the large capacity cesspool ban, please visit: http://www.epa.gov/region09/water/groundwater/uic-hicesspools.html

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May 04, 2012

Newspapers Across Great Lakes States Agree: Portman's Plan Is Needed To Stop Asian Carp

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Over the past week, a number of newspapers from Great Lakes states have come out in support of Senator Rob Portman’s (R-OH) bipartisan legislation to prevent Asian carp and other invasive species from entering the Great Lakes.  The Stop Invasive Species Act requires the speedy creation of an action plan to block Asian carp from entering the Great Lakes through a number of rivers and tributaries across the Great Lakes region.

The Columbus Dispatch, The Toledo Blade and The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette have all cited the need for immediate action on this issue to protect the environmental and economic benefits of the Great Lakes and support Portman’s plan for doing just that. Some of the highlights include:

“Because the threat posed to the Great Lakes by invasive Asian carp has been beyond urgent for several years, the message of a newly-introduced bipartisan bill in the U.S. Senate is welcome: Hurry up.,” Columbus Dispatch.

“The Corps now plans to offer options for keeping the big fish…out of the Great Lakes by the end of 2013, and to present a final proposal by 2015. That isn't soon enough, given the inroads carp already have made. (Portman’s) legislation would mandate a progress report from the Corps within three months of its enactment, and a final proposal for action within 18 months…,” Toledo Blade.

“…Asian carp continue their migration toward the Great Lakes. Fortunately, Sens. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, and Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich, have a proposal that could help block a carp invasion,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

EPA Regional Administrator and Congressmember Frank Pallone Tour Superfund Sites in Central New Jersey

EPA Regional Administrator and Congressmember Frank Pallone Tour Superfund Sites in Central New Jersey

EPA Finishes Cleanup of Soil at Imperial Oil Superfund Site in Morganville using

$33 million in ARRA funds; Uses $5 million in ARRA funds to complete soil work at

Horseshoe Road in Sayreville

Contact: John Martin, office: (212) 637- 3662, cell: (646) 256-6710, martin.johnj@epa.gov

(New York, N.Y. – May 2, 2012) U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Regional Administrator Judith A. Enck and Congressmember Frank Pallone were in Morganville, N.J. today to announce the completion of a $50 million contaminated soil cleanup, which clears the way for the redevelopment of the property. The site received $33 million in new funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) to accelerate the hazardous waste cleanup already underway. Regional Administrator Enck and Congressman Pallone also visited three other federal Superfund sites in Monmouth and Middlesex Counties in New Jersey to highlight the success of the federal Superfund law in protecting the health of people who live and work near contaminated sites and in creating jobs. Superfund is the federal cleanup program established in 1980 to investigate and clean up the country’s most hazardous waste sites. The Superfund program operates on the principle that polluters should pay for the cleanups, rather than passing the costs to taxpayers. When sites are placed on the Superfund list, the EPA looks for parties responsible for the pollution and requires them to pay for the cleanups. Cleanups are only funded by taxpayer dollars when the responsible parties cannot be found or are not financially viable.

“Today, Congressmember Pallone and I got a first-hand look at how the cleanups of Imperial Oil and other Superfund sites are protecting people’s health and the environment,” said EPA Regional Administrator Judith A. Enck. “Sites like Imperial Oil can be put back to good use. The site has gone from being a polluted wasteland to area with trees, shrubs, grass, restored wetlands, a pond and a bike path.”

“Cleaning up toxic waste sites in New Jersey not only protects public health and the environment, but in 2011 federal Superfund cleanups created about 2300 jobs,” said Ms. Enck.

Soil on the 15-acre Imperial Oil site, which contained a facility that reclaimed and processed waste oil, was contaminated with arsenic, lead, PCBs and other pollutants. Arsenic has been linked to cancer of the bladder, lungs, skin, kidney, liver, and prostate. Lead is a toxic metal that can cause damage to a child’s ability to learn and a range of health problems in adults. PCBs are likely cancer-causing chemicals and can cause neurological damage, especially in children.

The Imperial Oil facility operated from the 1950s until 2007. Improper work practices and piles of waste from oil reclamation activities contaminated soil and sediment on the plant property, in adjacent wetlands, the nearby Birch Swamp Brook and on several residential properties. Ground water underlying the site was also contaminated.

The site cleanup was originally overseen by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. The NJDEP excavated soil, cleaned up wetlands and sediment in the brook and removed oil that was floating underneath the ground on top of the ground water. The EPA took over the cleanup of the property in 2006 at NJDEP’s request. In 2008, the EPA completed the demolition of structures on the site, including all production, storage and maintenance buildings, as well as above-ground tanks. The EPA used $33 million in ARRA funds to complete the work.

In 2011, the EPA completed the excavation of the soil and the restoration of the industrial property. The agency is in the process of completing seeding and final restoration of the property and the wetlands. The EPA has also recently cleaned up contaminated soil on two residential properties. The EPA continues to investigate the ground water contamination from the site to determine the best course of action to address it.

The second stop on today’s tour was to the adjoining Horseshoe Road and Atlantic Resources Superfund sites in Sayreville, which are located on the south shore of the Raritan River. Both sites are contaminated with a variety of chemicals, including volatile organic compounds and heavy metals, which have entered drainage channels that run off into an 8-acre marsh adjacent to the Raritan River. The EPA completed the soil cleanup at the Horseshoe Road portion of the site in 2009, with the assistance of $5 million in ARRA funding. The EPA’s remaining cleanup plan includes a soil cleanup at the Atlantic Resources site and the dredging and excavation of contaminated marsh and river sediments. These sediments will then be disposed of offsite, and the dredged areas will be backfilled with clean sediments.

The final Superfund site visited today was the Chemical Insecticide site in Edison. By 2005, approximately 241,000 cubic yards of contaminated soil had been excavated and removed from the former home of an insecticide manufacturing facility. The EPA has put into place a long-term ground water monitoring program to ensure that any contaminated ground water at this site is addressed. The site is now owned by the Township of Edison.

For more information about Superfund sites in New Jersey and across the country, please visit:

http://www.epa.gov/region02/superfund.

Follow EPA Region 2 on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/eparegion2 and visit our Facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/eparegion2

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Connecticut Children’s Medical Center Acknowledged for Exceptional Asthma Program

News Release
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
New England Regional Office
May 2, 2012

Contact: Paula Ballentine, 617-918-1027

Connecticut Children’s Medical Center Acknowledged for Exceptional Asthma Program

EPA Highlights Asthma Awareness Month in May

(Boston, Mass.—May 2, 2012)  The Connecticut Children’s Medical Center is one of four winners nationwide of the 2012 National Environmental Leadership Award in Asthma Management for its Easy Breathing Program, which includes patient education and environmental interventions. The program is implemented across the state of Connecticut helping ensure that comprehensive asthma care is available to the 105,000 children with asthma now enrolled in the program.

The Easy Breathing Program is designed to aid primary care clinicians in making a diagnosis of asthma and treating individuals using a systematic, standardized, approach' which adheres to the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program (NAEPP) guidelines.  It was the first large scale program in the country to demonstrate that clinicians can use NAEPP guidelines and that its’ effective use can result in improved quality of asthma care.  One of the distinguishing features of this program is the creation of a robust database which is used for research and reporting.  It allows the Center to provide clinicians with demographical and other information relating to environmental exposures and asthma severity of children enrolled in the program.

"The City of Hartford -- Connecticut's Capital City -- has some of the greatest health disparities in the country, and with reported asthma rates nearing 20% and high asthma-mortality rates for both men and women, this recognition is well-deserved and I congratulate Connecticut Children's Medical Center on their service and commitment to Hartford and the State of Connecticut,” said   Mayor Pedro E. Segarra. “This distinction is also important in that it gives me confidence to know that we have community partners who, working with our Department of Health & Human Services, are focused on providing our residents with the best quality of life possible."

As part of Asthma Awareness Month, EPA is honoring exceptional health plans, health care providers and communities in action for their efforts to improve the lives of people with asthma in underserved communities across the country. The other three winners include: L.A. Care Health Plan, Los Angeles, Calif., Michigan Department of Community Health’s Asthma Prevention and Control Program, Lansing, Mich., Mission Health, Asheville, N.C.
EPA is encouraging Americans to take action against asthma by learning more about the disease and how it affects their families and communities. Nearly 26 million Americans, including more than 7 million children, are affected by this chronic respiratory disease, including low income and minority populations at the highest rates.
The annual economic cost of asthma, including direct medical costs from hospital stays and indirect costs such as lost school and work days, amount to about $56 billion. Through the Clean Air Act, EPA has helped prevent millions of asthma attacks across the country and continues to work alongside federal, state and local partners to address this nationwide problem. In 2010 alone, pollution prevention standards under the Clean Air Act lead to reductions in fine particle matter and ozone pollution that prevented more than 1.7 million incidences of asthma attacks. Recent standards, such as the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards, will further reduce air pollution and help prevent asthma attacks.

Americans who suffer from asthma can learn to control their symptoms and still maintain active lifestyles. Here are some simple steps:

Know your Asthma Triggers and Avoid Them: Air pollution, dust mites, mold, secondhand smoke and even cockroaches can trigger asthma attacks. Learn your triggers and avoid them in your home and neighborhood. 

Create an Asthma Action Plan: You can help avoid the emergency room by managing your asthma daily. With a doctor's help, you can create an asthma action plan to help you effectively manage your asthma and reduce exposure to triggers.

Get Active: Even if you have asthma, by taking the appropriate medications and avoiding your triggers, you can still participate in sports and activities. 

Be 'Air Aware': Check local air quality conditions at airnow.gov and make informed decisions about participating in outdoor activities. To help, an Air Quality Index mobile app is available for smart phones.
More on Asthma and the 2012 Award winners: http://www.epa.gov/asthma

More on the Air Quality Index Mobile App: http://m.epa.gov/apps/airnow.html

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