EPA v. Scher Chemicals, Inc

Case summary

This is a consolidated action pursuant to our Consolidated Rules of Practice (40 C.F.R. �22.18(b)(2) and (3)), which provide that a proceeding may be simultaneously commenced and concluded by the issuance of a Consent Agreement and Final Order when the parties agree to settle one or more causes of action before the filing of an Administrative Complaint. We intend to resolve this case in this manner. A review of the Toxic Release Inventory Envirofacts Database (TRI Database) indicated that the Respondent voluntarily submitted a Form R for diethanolamine for the calendar year 1998 on June 30, 2000 which was more than a year late. On March 7, 2003, a letter addressing the above late reporting violation was sent to the company in an effort to gain more insight into the circumstances concerning the above violation. As a result of phone conversations between Ms. Janie Woo, Director, Technical Services and Ms. Mary A. Kowalski, Pesticides, and Toxic Substances Branch, it was determined that the company had originally submitted an annual certification (Form A) in lieu of the Form R when the facility did not qualify for the exemption. The company had processed 470, 000 pounds of diethanolamine in 1998 and had releases greater than 500 pounds which disqualified them for the Alternate Threshold (Form A) exemption. The Respondent was required to submit the Form R for diethanolamine by July 1, 1999 for calendar year 1998 to the Administrator of EPA and to the State of New Jersey. This failure to submit the Form R, in a timely manner, constitutes a violation of Section 313 of EPCRA, 42 U.S.C. �11023, and 40 C.F.R �372.30. The amount of the penalty was initially calculated using the Enforcement Response Policy (ERP) for Section 313 of EPCRA issued by the USEPA Office of Compliance Monitoring, Office of Pesticides and Toxic Substances, on August 10, 1992. The original proposed penalty was $11,000.

Defendants (1)

• Scher Chemicals, Inc.Named in complaintNamed in settlement

Facilities (1)

• SCHER CHEMICALS, INC.

  ONE STYERTOWNE ROAD, CLIFTON, NJ, 070120736

  Registry ID: 110015740028

Statutes cited

• EPCRA 313 — Toxic Chemical Release Reporting (TRI)

Enforcement conclusions (1)

• Scher Chemicals, Inc.entered 2003-05-09

  Primary law: EPCRA

  Federal penalty: $2,750

Timeline (4 milestones)

• 2003-05-09Enforcement Action Closed
• 2003-05-09Complaint Filed/Proposed Order
• 2003-05-09Final Order Issued
• 2003-06-02Enforcement Action Data Entered