Read the press release:  Chicopee Company Pays Fine and Ships over 40,000 lbs of Hazardous Waste, Protecting Human Health and the Environment

Release Date: 12/19/2013
Contact Information: Emily Zimmerman, 617-918-1037

(Boston, Mass) A paint manufacturer in Chicopee, Mass. has agreed to pay a penalty of $153,917 to resolve claims by the US Environmental Protection Agency that it violated federal hazardous waste laws.

In an agreement signed recently with EPA’s New England office, C & C Ventures, also known as Randolph Products, agreed to pay the penalty and to comply with the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).

Last June, EPA filed a complaint against the company alleging violations of hazardous waste management laws. C&C Ventures manufactures a variety of paint products at its Chicopee, Mass. facility. Its violations included

• Failure to properly identify hazardous wastes.
• Failure to properly label and store hazardous waste containers.
• Failure to train personnel who manage hazardous waste.

Hazardous waste regulations under RCRA are designed to ensure that operating facilities manage hazardous wastes in an environmentally sound manner from “cradle to grave” in order to prevent releases that could pose risks to human health and the environment. Manufacturing facilities often generate hazardous wastes during production, and those wastes must be properly managed and disposed of.

Since EPA’s discovery of the alleged violations at the Chicopee, Mass company, over 40,000 lbs of hazardous waste have been shipped off site to a licensed hazardous waste facility. In addition to paying a penalty totaling $153,917 for violations of RCRA, C&C Ventures has also worked to come into compliance so as to continue protecting human health and the environment in the future by:

• properly determining whether or not wastes are hazardous;
• properly labeling and storing hazardous waste containers;
• providing hazardous waste training to employees; and
• conducting weekly inspections of hazardous waste storage areas.

More information: Enforcing hazardous waste laws in New England (http://www.epa.gov/region1/enforcement/waste/index.html)

It’s no surprise to me that among the facility’s violations was a lack of training.  The RCRA training provided by Daniels Training Services will help you to avoid these kinds of penalties.  Please contact me for your free training consultation.

Below is the text from a notice from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency regarding the Biennial Hazardous Waste Report due March 1, 2014 for calendar year 2013.  Read here how this once annual report was changed to biennial in 2012.

The reporting season has begun for the 2013 Hazardous Waste Report, which is due on March 1, 2014. This report is required of any facility that generated 2200 pounds or more of hazardous waste (or 2.2 pounds or more of acute hazardous waste) in any calendar month in 2013.

There are no changes to the reporting process, which means no changes to the eBusiness data entry screens or paper forms. eBiz users can now access reports from their facility’s entire period of record. In the past users were only able to access reports from 2009 or later. The only changes for the 2013 report itself are changes to some of the Management Method Codes and to the Waste Minimization Codes. You can see a list of these changes on pages 2 to 3, 29 to 30 and 62 in the Hazardous Waste Report Instructions. If you are filing a paper report or importing data files make sure that you are using correct and up to date codes or your report will fail data validation.

If you haven’t filed electronically before, please consider doing so this year. The software has many features that help you prepare the report quickly and more accurately than on paper. The software allows the user to validate some of the information provided in the report which helps to reduce the possibility of violations. It also includes the ability to copy a previous year’s report as a starting point for a new report, even if you haven’t filed electronically in the past. Remember, Ohio EPA recently started collecting Hazardous Waste Reports biennially. So the most recent report you will be able to access is from 2011. If you do plan on filing electronically this year for the first time make sure to start the process early so you can obtain a PIN and associate your Responsible Official with your facility.

The Responsible Official for the facility is the person who gets the electronic filing process started by applying for the eDRUMS service. To determine if you meet the requirement for either a Responsible Official or Delegated Responsible Official please reference OAC 3745-50-42. Begin by accessing our training materials on the hazardous waste reporting web page. These consist of three recorded webinars, or PDF copies of the PowerPoint presentations from the webinars:

1. Getting Started in the eBusiness Center
2. Applying for and Delegating the HW Service
3. Preparing a Report in eDRUMS.

If your facility’s report was filed electronically for 2011 but there have been personnel changes, it’s time to have new users get eBiz accounts or terminate access rights for users no longer involved with the facility’s report. For information on removing preparers or Responsible Officials, see “Changing Roles in eBiz” on the Report web page.

If you have any questions, including questions or concerns about getting started in eBiz, please contact:

Thomas Babb, Hazardous Waste Report Coordinator
Thomas.Babb@epa.ohio.gov

(614) 914-2527

or

Paula Canter, System Administrator
paula.canter@epa.ohio.gov

(614) 644-2923

If you are a facility that is required to file an Annual Ground Water Monitoring Report in addition to the HWR please read these updates for the 2013 Reporting cycle.

If you are required to submit the biennial hazardous waste report in Ohio, that means you are also required to provide formal training (classroom or on-the-job) to all facility personnel annually so they are able to manage hazardous waste in compliance with the regulations (Ohio has an authorized hazardous waste program, so you must refer to state regulations).  In addition to hazardous waste management procedures, employees must be trained on your facility’s emergency response procedures.  I can provide this training (also HazMat Employee training required by the USDOT) in a variety of formats:  Seminars, Onsite, Web-Based.  Please contact me for a free consultation about your training requirements.

A Large Quantity Generator of hazardous waste (LQG) and a Treatment Storage and Disposal Facility for hazardous waste (TSDF) are both subject to the USEPA regulations at 40 CFR 265, Subpart D and are required to have a contingency plan for their operations.  In a series of articles (The Requirements of 40 CFR 265, Subpart D – Contingency Plan and Emergency Procedures) I explored in detail the requirements of each section of Subpart D.  Here I will address some of the frequently asked questions about these USEPA regulations and their application to a hazardous waste generator (LQG). (more…)

This article is the third in a series to address the requirements of 40 CFR 265, Subpart D – Contingency Plan and Emergency Procedures as it applies to a large quantity generator of hazardous waste (LQG).  Each article will explain the requirements of a specific section of Subpart D.  Keep in mind the regulations of your state may differ from these Federal regulations.

The purpose of this article:  identify and explain the requirements (some of them) of 40 CFR 265.52 Content of Contingency Plan.

Section 265.52 identifies the five required components of the contingency plan (paragraphs a, & c – f).  An option to utilize the National Response Team’s Integrated Contingency Plan Guidance or “One Plan” is discussed in paragraph b of section 265.52.  This article will explain the required content of the contingency plan (paragraphs a, & c – f) and leave the One Plan (paragraph b) to a later article.

Hold on a minute!  These regulations were revised and moved to a new location within Title 40 of the CFR by the Generator Improvements Rule.  If your state has not yet adopted the Generator Improvements Rule, then this article is still applicable to you (but it won’t be for much longer).  If your state has adopted and been authorized to enforce the Generator Improvements Rule, then these regulations no longer apply to you.  Read: What is the status of the Generator Improvements Rule in my state?

To see an explanation of these regulations as revised by the Generator Improvements Rule you must refer to the following:

• Large quantity generator of hazardous waste (LQG)
• Small quantity generator of hazardous waste (SQG)

To see an explanation of the regulations prior to the revisions of the Generator Improvements Rule, please continue reading this article.

(more…)

BOSTON – The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) has assessed a $6,440 penalty against Radant Technologies, Inc. of Stow for violations of state Hazardous Waste regulations. The company manufactures composite radomes and reflectors at its 255 Hudson Road facility.

During a routine inspection conducted in March, MassDEP personnel found the company had accumulated hazardous waste for longer than is allowed by its registered status, failed to maintain a hazardous waste inspection log and failed to properly label its hazardous waste containers. In a consent order with MassDEP, the company is required to maintain compliance with applicable regulations and pay the penalty.

“Hazardous Waste regulations require proper management and disposal of wastes within specific time frames, which are dependent on the amount of waste generated,” said Lee Dillard Adams, director of MassDEP’s Central Regional Office in Worcester. “Once made aware of the violations, the company took immediate corrective actions.”

MassDEP is responsible for ensuring clean air and water, safe management and recycling of solid and hazardous wastes, timely cleanup of hazardous waste sites and spills and the preservation of wetlands and coastal resources.

For the full news release from MassDEP:  Radant Technologies of Stow Penalized $6,400 for Violating Hazardous Waste Requirements

As noted in the above news release, the on-site accumulation time limit for hazardous waste is determined by a facility’s hazardous waste generator status:  no more than 90 days for a large quantity generator or hazardous waste and no more than 180 days for a small quantity generator of hazardous waste.  There is no time limit for the on-site accumulation of hazardous waste in the following situations:

• A conditionally exempt small quantity generator of hazardous waste.
• A used oil.
• A non-hazardous waste.
• A universal waste (limited to one year).
• A waste that is excluded from definition as a hazardous waste due to a regulatory exclusion or recycling.

A large or small quantity generator of hazardous waste that exceeds the on-site accumulation time limit, even by just one day, can face severe penalties, as in this case.

In addition to an on-site accumulation time limit, and a host of other regulatory requirements, both a large and small quantity generator of hazardous waste must provide training for its facility personnel that handle hazardous waste or may respond to a hazardous waste emergency.  Contact me to provide the RCRA hazardous waste training that you need to comply with the regulations and to learn how to avoid penalties like this one.

BOSTON — A waste hauling firm based in Essex will pay more than $93,000 to settle claims that it illegally dumped multiple loads of construction and demolition waste at an unpermitted site in Methuen, Attorney General Martha Coakley announced today.

According to the complaint, entered Wednesday along with the consent judgment in Suffolk Superior Court, Dynamic Waste Systems, Inc. violated the state’s solid waste disposal laws by dumping more than 115 loads of construction and demolition waste, including concrete, brick, and stone, at the site over a period of 70 days.

“We will vigorously pursue those who fail to follow the Commonwealth’s solid waste laws and regulatory requirements,” AG Coakley said. “This settlement sends a strong message that haulers who improperly dispose of waste will be forced to clean up illegal dumping grounds.”

According to the complaint, Thomas Battye, the owner of the Methuen site, never applied for or received an assignment to operate a solid waste facility from the Methuen Board of Health or a solid waste management facility permit from the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP).

“Illegal dumping of solid waste undermines the protection of the Commonwealth’s natural resources, and it won’t be tolerated,” said MassDEP Commissioner Kenneth Kimmell. “Disposal of materials must be done at properly approved or permitted facilities without exception.”

The consent judgment requires that Dynamic Waste Systems pay a total of $90,000 into a special fund established by the Commonwealth to help with the cost of site evaluation and subsequent cleanup work at the Battye site. Under the judgment, Dynamic will also pay a $3,750 civil penalty.

Battye is the subject of a separate, pending action brought by the Commonwealth related to solid waste violations at the Methuen site. The AG’s Office is also pursuing claims against additional waste haulers and demolition contractors who dumped or contracted for solid waste disposal at the Battye site.

Assistant Attorney General Matthew Ireland of AG Coakley’s Environmental Protection Division handled the case, with assistance from MassDEP Environmental Analysts Mark Fairbrother, John MacAuley and Karen Goldensmith, and MassDEP attorneys Jeanne Argento and Colleen McConnell, all from MassDEP’s Northeast Regional Office.

Even though the waste in question was not a hazardous waste, the potential remains for significant fines if the state’s regulations are violated.  The regulations of both the USEPA and MassDEP identify a solid waste as any discarded material that is not excluded from regulation (eg. due to recycling).  Some solid waste may also be a hazardous waste if they are either identified as a listed hazardous waste and/or exhibit a characteristic of a hazardous waste (ignitability, corrosivity, reactivity, or toxicity).  If not listed nor characteristic, or an exclusion applies, then the waste remains a non-hazardous solid waste.

Conducting a hazardous waste determination for all of your solid waste is one of your primary responsibilities.  If only a solid waste, you must still comply with the regulations of your State and the USEPA under Subtitle D of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).

Please don’t hesitate to contact me with any questions about the management of solid waste, hazardous waste, used oil, or universal waste in Massachusetts or anywhere in the US.

BOSTON – The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) assessed a $7,250 penalty to the New England Laborers Training Academy (NELTA) to settle environmental violations resulting from a 1,000-gallon diesel fuel spill at its facility on East Street in Hopkinton.

On Sept. 21, 2011, the Hopkinton Fire Department notified MassDEP of a diesel fuel release that surfaced in a basement sump pump, causing fuel odors inside an Academy building. NELTA personnel conducted inventory reconciliation of the building’s fuel usage and estimated that 1,000 gallons of fuel was lost during an incident dating back to April 2011 that was never reported to MassDEP nor assessed and cleaned up. Failure to timely notify and immediately assess and abate the release of the heating oil resulted in contamination to soils, groundwater and odor impacts within the building five months later.

As part of a consent order, NELTA was assessed the $7,250 penalty and worked with MassDEP staff to revise its spill contingency and material management plans. As part of the agreement, NELTA was required to pay $3,750 of the assessed penalty to the Commonwealth. The organization also agreed to spend the remaining $3,500 penalty on a Supplemental Environmental Project that will help to purchase emergency equipment for the Hopkinton Fire Department.

“Immediate response actions and timely spill notification are critical to prevent greater environmental damage and cost,” said Lee Dillard Adams, director of MassDEP’s Central Regional Office in Worcester. “NELTA has improved its business practices to prevent a recurrence of this chain of events, which cost the Academy significantly more than it would have to address the spill appropriately in the first place.”

MassDEP is responsible for ensuring clean air and water, safe management and recycling of solid and hazardous wastes, timely cleanup of hazardous waste sites and spills and the preservation of wetlands and coastal resources.

Another thing to consider with all of the above is the fact that many of the RCRA hazardous waste regulations pertaining to generator treatment and management of hazardous waste are suspended during the immediate response to a spill or release of a hazardous waste or what could be a hazardous waste.  That suspension ends, however, whenever it is deemed that the “immediate” response is complete.  Any spill residue that is not promptly cleaned up could be considered to be discarded by being abandoned pursuant to 40 CFR 261.2(b) and therefore subject to determination as a hazardous waste.  If either a listed or characteristic hazardous waste, it would be subject to full regulation under RCRA for on-site disposal.

Contact me to learn more about the RCRA hazardous waste regulations of the USEPA or your State.

Company Ignored Agency Warning and Repeated Violation

WILLIAMSPORT — The Department of Environmental Protection today announced that it has fined Welded Construction LP of Perrysburg, Ohio, $12,000 for illegally burning wood mats on two occasions in August at its facility in Wolf Township, Lycoming County.

“We told company officials that the open burning of wood waste is a violation of Pennsylvania’s Solid Waste Management Act during our first complaint investigation,” DEP North-central Regional Director Marcus Kohl said. “Yet just eight days later, DEP inspectors caught the company doing the exact same thing.”

Kohl added that it is the responsibility of out-of-state companies to become familiar with Pennsylvania’s environmental laws and regulations to avoid enforcement action, including fines, which may be taken by the department when violations are documented.

“These mats should have been beneficially reused, or taken to a permitted landfill for proper disposal,” Kohl said.

A follow-up inspection conducted by the department in early September confirmed that all violations had been corrected.

The mats – made from hardwood timbers bound together by metal bolts and pins –are used to prevent destruction of land during the movement of heavy equipment in areas of soft ground, wetlands or streams.

You may think that open burning would be a violation of a state’s air regulations, and not its solid waste regulations, as is indicated here.  In fact, the open burning of waste, both hazardous and non-hazardous, was one of the original goals of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) passed in 1976, codified as Federal regulations of the USEPA beginning in 1980, and adopted or incorporated into state regulations by most states (all but Iowa, Alaska, and Puerto Rico) throughout the 1980s.  Read more about it here:  The History of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

Contact me to schedule training that will ensure compliance with the regulations of the USEPA and your state.

For more information, visit www.dep.state.pa.us or call 570-327-3653.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Kansas City, Mo., company pleaded guilty in federal court today to illegally transporting hazardous waste.

Z-Group, LLC, is a Kansas company registered to do business in Missouri. Company president Friedrich-Wilhelm Zschietzschmann represented the company in court today to plead guilty before U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to illegally transporting hazardous waste.

Zschietzschmann was also the president and CEO of Z-International, Inc., which specialized in the labeling industry.  Z-International used large quantities of ink and ink-related products in its business, making labels for numerous companies all over the world.  Z-International was located at 110 East 16th Street, Kansas City, Mo. Z-Group was established in 2001 by Zschietzschmann to serve as owner of real estate where Z-International operated its business.

Z-International was closed by Zschietzschmann in July 2010.  Any assets or fixtures remaining on the property after the business closed were sold or otherwise disposed of by a Z-International employee.

Between July 2010 and April 2012, the company authorized personnel to hire others to transport hazardous waste to a separate location. Z-International employees authorized the transportation of 23 containers of varying sizes that contained liquid hazardous waste to Studer Container Service, 520 Madison Ave., Kansas City, Mo. Studer did not have a permit to receive hazardous waste.

In April 2012, Environmental Protection Agency officials conducted a compliance inspection at Studer.  During the inspection, EPA inspectors found several containers of what appeared to be hazardous materials.

On June 28, 2012, EPA began its sampling and clean-up operation. On Dec. 21, 2012, the EPA National Enforcement Investigations Center provided analytical results for 38 samples collected from the containers dumped at Studer. Five of the samples tested positive for ignitability and two of the samples tested positive for toxicity.

The EPA Superfund Program cleaned up the hazardous waste at Studer to eliminate possible adverse effects on human health and environment. The total EPA Superfund cost was $36,871.

Under the terms of today’s plea agreement, Z-Group must pay a $50,000 fine and $36,871 in restitution, for a total payment of $86,871. The company is also subject to up to five years of probation. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jane Pansing Brown. It was investigated by the Environmental Protection Agency, Criminal Investigation Division.

Read the full release here.

The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and the regulations based upon it (both USEPA and State) mandate “cradle-to-grave” responsibility for all hazardous waste.  The RCRA regulations, however, only apply to active hazardous waste sites.  The regulations of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) and its amendments, collectively known as “Superfund”, have the authority to clean up closed or abandoned sites that are contaminated with Hazardous Substances, which is the case here.  Either way, it is the generator of the hazardous waste that will be held responsible for the clean-up costs.

Contact me with questions about disposal options for your hazardous waste and to ensure you receive the best training that will help you to avoid situations such as this.

SACRAMENTO, CA – R Squared Circuits, Inc., a company that formerly manufactured printed circuit boards in Folsom, CA.,will pay $75,000 to settle violations of hazardous waste laws, the
Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) announced today.

“Hazardous waste generators must meet safety standards, including training their employees, documenting their operations, and obtaining required permits before treating hazardous waste,” said Paul Kewin, Division Chief for DTSC’s Enforcement and Emergency Response Program.  “This settlement demonstrates the department’s continuing efforts to uphold compliance with existing environmental law, especially when a violator shows signs of leaving the jurisdiction and escaping accountability.”

R Squared Circuits discontinued operations in California and closed its facility on December 16, 2011, declaring that it did not have the financial resources to pay the full penalty determined by
DTSC.

The Stipulation for Entry of Final Judgment on Consent (Stipulation) filed by the California Attorney General’s Office on behalf of DTSC, secures injunctive relief and requires that R Squared Circuits pay an initial payment of $75,000 to DTSC. An additional amount of $25,000 has to be paid to the DTSC if R Squared Circuits violates injunctive provisions set forth in the stipulation.

A Complaint filed in Sacramento County Superior Court lists 11 causes of action, including:
 Treating of hazardous waste without permit or authorization.
 Failure to maintain operating records for hazardous waste treatment systems.
 Failure to develop a training plan.
 Failure to maintain employee training records.
 Absence of integrity assessments for treatment tanks.
 Absence of daily tank inspection records.
 Absence of hazardous waste labels on treatment tanks.
 Absence of waste analysis plan.
 Absence of phase I Environmental Assessment.
 Absence of Permit by Rule (PBR) authorization from the Sacramento County Environmental Management Department for the waste water treatment unit and illegal storage of hazardous waste.
 Failure to maintain and test fire protection equipment, spill control equipment and decontamination equipment to assure their proper operation in time of emergency.

FOR GENERAL INQUIRIES: Contact the Department of Toxic Substances Control by phone at (800) 728-6942 or visit www.dtsc.ca.gov. To report illegal handling, discharge, or disposal of hazardous waste, call the Waste Alert Hotline at (800) 698-6942.

Read the entire news release here.

Though California’s regulations differ from those of the rest of the nation in many ways, there is nothing unfamiliar about this facility’s hazardous waste violations.  Note the double-hit for not having a training plan and then not documenting the training properly.  Proper documentation of the training you’ve completed is a big issue and one I stress during my Onsite Training as w ell as Seminars and Webinars.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me for all of your Hazardous Waste (RCRA) and HazMat Employee (USDOT) training needs.