DOJ’s Environment and Natural Resources Division Issues 2023 Accomplishments Report

On April 19, 2024, the US Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD) issued “Accomplishments for Fiscal Year (FY) 2023.” The accompanying press release said the report “highlights ENRD’s work in 2023 to defend pollution control measures, approvals for renewable energy projects and federal stewardship of public lands, wildlife and natural resources.” Large […]

Chemical Company to Pay $1.4 Million in Chemical Accident Prevention Settlement

In 2021, EPA conducted a Virtual Partial Compliance Evaluation (VPCE) of a chemical manufacturing facility that identified violations of EPA’s chemical accident prevention requirements. In 2022, while EPA and the company were negotiating a settlement to resolve the violations found in the VPCE, the facility had a fire that resulted in a shelter-in-place order for […]

EPA Issues Rule Requiring Facility Response Plans

On March 21, 2024, EPA announced issuance of a final rule requiring industrial facilities to prepare and submit to EPA facility response plans. In its news release, EPA said the rule is “to ensure facilities are prepared to respond to a worst-case discharge of hazardous substances.” Plan Requirements In its Rule Summary, EPA defines “worst-case […]

EPA Amends Risk Management Program

On March 1, 2024, EPA announced it had finalized amendments to the Risk Management Program (RMP). According to EPA’s news release, the amendment “covers all 11,740 regulated RMP facilities across the country and contains more rigorous requirements for a subgroup of facilities that are more accident-prone and pose the greatest risk to communities.” Specific Regulated […]

EPA Region 6 Issues Advisory on Hazardous Weather Events

EPA Region 6, which includes Texas and Louisiana, issued a news release on July 18, 2023, reminding facility operators of their obligation to “maintain safety, minimize releases that do occur, and report chemical releases or oil spills and discharges in a timely manner” before and during hurricanes, tropical storms, and other hazardous weather events. Especially […]

Supreme Court of Texas Says Investors Not Liable in Plant Explosion Case

The Supreme Court of Texas announced that a direct or indirect owner of a company is not liable for the company’s actions as long as the company is a properly created business organization (corporation, limited liability company, or limited partnership) and the owner’s actions are “consistent with its investor status.” Claims that Investors Could Have […]

Settlement with $2.4 Million Penalty Helps Complete Sale of Facility

A company agreed to sell a major chemical manufacturing facility. The state environmental agency refused to transfer the water discharge permit to the buyer, due to the seller’s past and ongoing discharge violations. The state told the seller it would not transfer the permit without a corrective mechanism in place, enforceable as to the seller […]

Record-Setting Penalty in Air Emissions Case

According to EPA’s May 17, 2023 news release, a settlement over refinery emissions includes “the largest civil penalty ever secured for a Clean Air Act stationary source settlement.” The settlement will also require installation of “control technology expected to reduce benzene by an estimated seven tons per year, other hazardous air pollutants (HAP) by 28 […]

Failure to Re-Install Safety Device Leads to Guilty Plea and $3 Million in Punitive Damages

A company’s employee, while trying to cut the wraps around a roller in a plastic extruder, was pulled into the rollers and killed. The company that purchased the extruder originally used it at another facility. The extruder came with a barrier guard electronically linked to a limit switch. The company closed the facility, disassembled the […]

Failure to Meet Industry Standards Leads to Significant Enforcement

EPA inspected several facilities of a large commodity and specialty chemical distributer. The inspections identified failures of the company to comply with industry standards when handling anhydrous ammonia, aqueous ammonia, chlorine, and formaldehyde. EPA initiated an enforcement action, asserting that noncompliance with industry standards violated the Clean Air Act (CAA), especially the CAA’s General Duty […]

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Posts regarding litigation and environmental concerns for businesses

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