Enforcement
Civil Cases and Settlements by Statute
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Definitions:
Air: CAA | Water: CWA , MPRSA , OPA , SDWA | Waste & Chemical: AHERA , CERCLA , EPCRA , FIFRA , RCRA , TSCA
Air: CAA | Water: CWA , MPRSA , OPA , SDWA | Waste & Chemical: AHERA , CERCLA , EPCRA , FIFRA , RCRA , TSCA
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| Respondent | Description | Type of Order | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kemira Group Settlement | The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it reached a settlement with two subsidiaries of the Kemira Group for violations of chemical and pesticide laws. | Consent Agreement and Final Order | 1/24/2013 |
| AT&T Wireless Settlement | The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and New Cingular Wireless (NCW) have reached an administrative settlement requiring the company to pay a civil penalty of $750,000 and spend $625,000 on environmental projects to resolve alleged reporting, planning and permitting violations at 332 legacy AT&T Wireless (AWS) sites now owned by NCW. | Consent Agreement and Final Order | 1/7/2013 |
| Cingular Wireless and New Cingular Wireless Audit Policy Settlement | The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced an agreement with New Cingular Wireless to resolve violations of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-know Act (EPCRA). New Cingular Wireless voluntarily disclosed reporting violations to EPA, which related to the presence of sulfuric acid, diesel, and lead at 642 cellular facilities in 35 states and Puerto Rico, after performing a comprehensive audit of their operations. | Consent Agreement | 2/10/2012 |
| Merck & Co., Inc. Settlement | The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Justice today announced that Merck & Co. has agreed to pay a $1.5 million civil penalty to settle alleged violations of federal environmental laws at its pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities in Riverside and West Point, Pa. | Complaint | 9/28/2011 |
| Department of the Interior Indian Affairs Settlement | The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) have reached an agreement to address alleged violations at schools and public water systems (PWSs) owned, operated, or otherwise the legal responsibility of DOI, Indian Affairs (IA). IA is comprised of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE). | Consent Agreement and Final Order, Federal Facility Compliance Agreement | 8/22/2011 |
| Dow Chemical Company Settlement | The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Justice today announced that Dow Chemical Company (Dow) has agreed to pay a $2.5 million civil penalty to settle alleged violations of the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) at its chemical manufacturing and research complex in Midland, Mich. | Consent Decree | 7/29/2011 |
| Motors Liquidation Company (f/k/a General Motors (GM) Corporation) Bankruptcy Settlement: Overview of 2011 Settlement Agreements | On March 3, 2011, the Bankruptcy Court approved an additional six settlements between the United States and Motors Liquidation Company (MLC, also known as "Old GM", and formerly known as General Motors Corporation), to settle certain environmental liabilities at six sites under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA, commonly known as Superfund) and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). On March 7, 2011, the court approved a seventh settlement resolving environmental claims at 34 non-owned sites under CERCLA, RCRA, and the Clean Air Act (CAA). | Consent Decree | 3/3/2011 |
| Motors Liquidation Company (f/k/a General Motors (GM) Corporation) Bankruptcy Settlement | The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Justice Department (DOJ), and the Unites States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, along with the states of Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Wisconsin and the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe announced that Motors Liquidation Corporation (MLC) has agreed to resolve its liabilities at 89 sites in the aforementioned 14 states across the U.S. for approximately $773 million. | Settlement Agreement | 10/20/2010 |
| Doe Run Resources Corporation Settlement | Doe Run Resources Corp. of St. Louis, North America’s largest lead producer, has agreed to spend approximately $65 million to correct violations of several environmental laws at 10 of its lead mining, milling and smelting facilities in southeast Missouri, the Justice Department, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Missouri Department of Natural Resources announced today. The settlement also requires the company to pay a $7 million civil penalty. | Consent Decree | 10/8/2010 |
| Chemtura Corporation Bankruptcy Settlement Agreement | The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Justice Department, and the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York today announced that Chemtura Corporation has agreed to resolve its liabilities at 17 sites across the U.S. for approximately $26 million. The agreement settles the government’s claims in Chemtura’s bankruptcy case relating to liabilities under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA, commonly known as Superfund), and for violations of the Clean Air Act (CAA), the Clean Water Act (CWA), and the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA). The bankruptcy settlement will fund past and future cleanup costs at Superfund sites across the country. | Settlement Agreement | 8/24/2010 |
| McWane, Inc. Settlement Information Sheet | (Washington, DC - July 14, 2010) McWane Inc., a national cast iron pipe manufacturer headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., has agreed to resolve more than 400 violations of federal and state environmental law at 28 of its manufacturing facilities in 14 states as part of a settlement filed in federal court today, the Justice Department, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the states of Alabama and Iowa announced. | Consent Decree | 7/14/2010 |
| Silgan Containers, LLC Settlement | Washington, D.C. – June 14, 2010) The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reached a settlement with Silgan Containers that will resolve alleged Clean Air Act (CAA) violations of the Prevention of Significant Deterioration/New Source Review (PSD/NSR) programs at 18 Silgan can manufacturing facilities across the United States. In October 1999, Silgan commenced a national air audit ("NAA") of the company's compliance with the CAA under an audit agreement with EPA and conducted a review of each facility (originally, a total of 28) on a Region-by-Region basis. Silgan disclosed noncompliance with PSD/NSR and other CAA requirements and voluntarily corrected noncompliance. Silgan disclosed the potential violations to Regions 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, and 10. | Consent Decree | 6/14/2010 |
| American Smelting and Refining Company (ASARCO) Bankruptcy Settlement | Bankruptcy settlement with American Smelting and Refining Company (ASARCO). EPA, along with other federal and state agencies pursued and received $1.79 billion to fund environmental cleanup and restoration under the bankruptcy reorganization. | Settlement Agreement | 12/10/2009 |
| INVISTA Audit Settlement | (Washington, D.C. – April 13, 2009) Invista will pay a $1.7 million civil penalty and spend up to an estimated $500 million to correct self-reported environmental violations discovered at facilities in seven states, the Justice Department and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today. The company disclosed more than 680 violations of water, air, hazardous waste, emergency planning and preparedness, and pesticide regulations to EPA after auditing 12 facilities it acquired from DuPont in 2004. | Consent Decree | 4/13/2009 |
| Colorite Specialty Resins Settlement | WASHINGTON—Colorite Specialty Resins, headquartered in Somerville, N.J., has agreed to perform corrective measures at its Burlington, N.J., manufacturing facility that will reduce harmful emissions of vinyl chloride to resolve alleged violations of federal and state environmental laws, the Justice Department, the State of New Jersey, and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today. | Consent Decree | 8/19/2008 |
| Equistar Chemicals Settlement | (Washington, D.C. - July 19, 2007) Equistar Chemicals LP, headquartered in Houston, Texas, will spend more than $125 million on pollution controls and cleanup to address a myriad of air, water and hazardous waste violations at seven petrochemical plants in Texas, Illinois, Iowa and Louisiana, the Justice Department and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today. The consent decree, lodged in federal district court in Illinois, requires Equistar to invest in comprehensive control and operational measures expected to significantly reduce air, water and hazardous waste pollution from the seven manufacturing facilities. The states of Iowa, Illinois and Louisiana have all joined the federal government in today's settlement. "Equistar will be the first in the petrochemical industry to adopt these stricter environmental measures, many of which will go beyond what the regulations would require," said Granta Nakayama, EPA's Assistant Administrator for Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. "Through these investments in environmental compliance, Equistar has a chance to turn its performance record around, and ultimately become a leader in the industry by running a cleaner, less polluting facility." | Consent Decree | 7/18/2007 |
| Kmart Consent Agreement and Final Order | (Washington, D.C. – May 9, 2007) Kmart will pay a $102,422 fine to settle self-disclosed violations of federal environmental regulations discovered at 17 distribution centers in 13 states. The company reported violations of clean water, hazardous waste, and emergency planning and preparedness regulations to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. If EPA had discovered Kmart’s violations through an inspection, the company would have faced a fine of more than $1.6 million. “Our top priority is to protect the environment and public health. We have a variety of tools and options to do that,” said Granta Nakayama, Assistant Administrator of EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “In this case, Kmart discovered its own violations and came forward with a plan to fix the problems." Kmart has corrected the violations found during a 2004 audit conducted by outside consultants. The company prepared and implemented spill prevention control and countermeasures plans, applied for appropriate storm water permits, complied with hazardous waste generator requirements, and submitted reports to state and local emergency planning and response organizations informing them of the presence of hazardous substances. The company discovered violations at distribution centers located in the following cities: Billerica, Mass.; Canton, Mich.; Chambersburg, Pa.; Denver/Brighton, Colo.; Forest Park, Ga.; Greensboro, N.C.; Groveport, Calif.; Lawrence, Kan.; Manteno, Ill.; Mira Loma, Calif.; Morrisville/Fairless Hills, Pa.; Newnan, Ga.; Ocala, Fla.; Ontario, Calif.; Shakopee, Minn.; Sparks, Nev.; and Warren, Ohio. | Consent Agreement and Final Order | 5/9/2007 |
| Kinder Morgan Consent Agreement and Final Order | (Washington, D.C. – May 2, 2007) Kinder Morgan Transmix Co. has agreed to pay the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency $600,000 to resolve numerous violations of federal air and hazardous waste regulations, including mixing hazardous waste with gasoline. "Illegally adding hazardous waste to gasoline can injure people's health and foul our environment," said Granta Nakayama, Assistant Administrator for EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. "The fuel requirements of the Clean Air Act are a critical part of EPA's program to reduce air pollution, today's action serves to underscore that we are protecting public health." The EPA cited the company for multiple violations of the federal Clean Air Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. The violations included failure to conduct an adequate waste analysis of the spent solvent and storing the material without an appropriate permit. The company also failed to collect and analyze samples of gasoline produced at its Hartford, Ill. facility. The EPA first discovered the violations in 2004 after following up on complaints from motorists about stalled vehicles. Hundreds of reports indicated that cars using gasoline produced at Kinder Morgan's Indianola, Pa. facility had stalled due to clogged fuel filters. During the investigation, EPA discovered the facility was blending gasoline with spent cyclohexane solvent, which is classified as a hazardous waste. | Consent Agreement and Final Order | 5/2/2007 |
| Motiva and BP Settlement Agreements | (Washington, D.C. – October 5, 2006) As part of ongoing efforts to protect public health by improving compliance with the motor vehicle fuels provisions of the federal Clean Air Act, EPA reached settlements on Sept. 27 with BP Products North America Inc. and with Motiva Enterprises LLC and Equilon Enterprises LLC, d/b/a Shell Oil Products US. EPA sets gasoline and diesel fuel standards under the Clean Air Act to reduce air pollutants such as smog, carbon monoxide and air toxics from motor vehicles. The companies, however, produced and distributed gasoline that failed to meet the regulatory requirements. Use of noncomplying fuel in motor vehicles can cause an increase in emissions that can significantly harm public health. | Settlement Agreements | 10/5/2006 |
| Seaboard Settlement | Washington, D.C. - Under two related settlements, Seaboard Foods LP and PIC USA Inc., will take significant steps at many of their facilities to ensure future compliance with environmental laws and to resolve allegations that the companies contaminated groundwater and surface waters near several of their facilities, the Justice Department and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today. Seaboard Foods LP, one of the nation’s largest vertically integrated pork producers, is the current owner of more than 200 farms in Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, and Colorado, and PIC USA, Inc. is the former owner and operator of several of the farms located in Oklahoma now operated by Seaboard. | Consent Decrees | 9/15/2006 |
| Oxy Vinyls Settlement | (Washington, D.C. - June 8, 2006) Citizens in areas of Texas, Kentucky and New Jersey will experience reduced exposure to the known human carcinogen vinyl chloride under a settlement announced today between Oxy Vinyls, LP (Oxy Vinyls) and the United States, the Louisville Metropolitan Air Pollution Control District (LMAPCD), and the State of New Jersey. Under the agreement, Oxy Vinyls, headquartered in Dallas, will significantly reduce vinyl chloride emissions at its plants in Pasadena, Texas; Louisville, Ky.; and Pedricktown, N.J., and the requirements associated with these reductions will become part of Oxy Vinyls'' permits. Oxy Vinyls has agreed to perform three environmental projects at an estimated cost of $1,224,000 that are expected to permanently decrease emissions of vinyl chloride by approximately 40,000 pounds per year within five years. Oxy Vinyls is North America''s largest polyvinyl chloride (PVC) resin supplier and the third largest PVC supplier worldwide. | Complaint and Consent Decree | 6/8/2006 |
| Premcor Refining Group, Inc. (Clark Refining and Marking, Inc.) Multimedia Settlement | On April 1, 2002, the Justice Department, the EPA, and the State of Illinois announced a settlement with Premcor Refining Group, Inc. in which Premcor is to pay $6.25 million to resolve claims that it violated five environmental statutes at its Blue Island Refinery in Blue Island, Illinois. The complaint alleged violations of the Clean Air Act; the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act; the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Recovery Act; and the Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act, as well as State of Illinois environmental laws and regulations. | Consent Decree | 4/1/2002 |
| Transcontinental Gas Pipeline Corporation (Transco) Multimedia Settlement | The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) entered into a settlement with Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Corporation (Transco), under which the company has agreed to test for and cleanup soil and groundwater contamination related to waste disposal at numerous compressor stations along its natural gas pipeline, which traverses 12 states from Texas to New York. In addition, the company will cleanup polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contamination, complete a storm water monitoring program, conduct storm water sampling at several compressor stations and pay a $1.4 million civil penalty. | Consent Decree | 2/1/2002 |
| Premium Standard Farms (PSF) and Continental Grain Company Civil Settlement | On November 19, 2001, the U.S. EPA and the Justice Department announced a civil settlement with the nation's second largest pork producer, Premium Standard Farms (PSF) and Continental Grain Company, Inc. (Continental). The settlement with the United States and the Citizen's Legal Environmental Action Network (CLEAN) resolves alleged violations of the Clean Water Act , the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act, The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, and the Clean Air Act that occurred at a number of the companies' factory farms in northwest Missouri. | Consent Decree | 11/19/2001 |
| Iowa Beef Packers (IBP), Inc. Multimedia Settlement | Iowa Beef Packers, Inc. (IBP), the world's largest meatpacker, has agreed to pay the United States $4.1 million in penalties for violating the nation's environmental laws. Under the settlement, IBP has committed to construct additional wastewater treatment systems at its Dakota City, Nebraska plant to reduce its discharges of ammonia to the Missouri River, and has agreed to continue and expand operational improvements ordered last year that will significantly reduce hydrogen sulfide air emissions. | Consent Decree | 10/12/2001 |
| Nucor Corporation, Inc. Multimedia Settlement | Nucor Corporation, Inc. will spend nearly $100 million to settle an environmental suit alleging that it failed to control the amount of pollution released from its steel factories in seven states, under an agreement reached with the Justice Department and EPA. This is the largest and most comprehensive environmental settlement ever with a steel manufacturer. | Consent Decree | 12/19/2000 |
| Morton International, Inc. Multimedia Settlement | On October 26, 2000, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) entered into a settlement with Morton International Inc. that resolved charges that the chemical company violated several environmental laws at its Moss Point, Miss., facility under a civil settlement and criminal plea agreement. Morton, a wholly owned subsidiary of Rohm and Haas Company based in Philadelphia, agreed to pay a $20 million penalty to be divided equally between the United States and Mississippi under the civil settlement filed in U.S. District Court in Biloxi. This penalty marks the largest-ever civil fine for environmental violations at a single facility. | Consent Decree | 10/26/2000 |
| BP Exploration, Inc. (BPXA) Multimedia Settlement | BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc. has pleaded guilty to one felony count related to the illegal disposal of hazardous waste on Alaska's North Slope, and it agreed to spend $22 million to resolve the criminal case and related civil claims. | Consent Decree | 9/23/1999 |
| ASARCO, Inc. Mining Corporation Multimedia Settlement | On January 23, 1998, the U.S. EPA announced that it reached a settlement agreement with ASARCO, Inc. that requires the national mining and smelting company to invest over $50 million for environmental cleanup and to correct alleged hazardous waste and water pollution violations at two of it facilities in Montana and Arizona. This agreement also marks the first time that a company has agreed to establish a court-enforced environmental management system (EMS) that is applicable at all of its active facilities nationwide -- 38 operating facilities with over 6,000 employees in seven states. | Consent Decree | 4/15/1999 |