EPA announces $790,000 settlement with Clean Harbors Environmental Services

On Monday, the United States and the state of Nebraska announced a settlement with Clean Harbors Environmental Services Inc. to address alleged violations of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, Clean Air Act, and Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act at the company’s commercial hazardous waste incinerator in Kimball, according to a press release from the EPA.

The alleged violations included failure to manage and contain hazardous wastes; failure to comply with air emission limits; failure to comply with chemical accident prevention safety requirements; and failure to timely report use of certain toxic chemicals. Under the terms of the settlement, the company agreed to pay a $790,000 civil penalty and will improve facility practices to protect facility workers and the surrounding community from potentially harmful releases of pollutants.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy (NDEE), the Kimball facility has been subject to previous enforcement actions, including penalty assessments, in 1997, 2004 and 2010.

Clean Harbors Environmental Services Inc. operates over 150 facilities throughout the U.S. and Canada, including landfills, wastewater treatment facilities, and incineration and recycling centers.

Terms of the settlement include upgraded plans to classify, manage and contain the wastes incinerated at the facility; an updated fire prevention and response program; and the performance of an environmental audit at the facility to identify and address any continuing noncompliance.