EPA v. Oxford Textile Inc.

Case summary

A review of the Toxic Release Inventory Envirofacts Database (TRI Database) indicated that the Respondent voluntarily submitted the following Form R reports to the EPA: Chemical Name Reporting Year Report Due Report Submitted Days Late phosphoric acid 1998 July 1, 1999 March 29, 2000 271 formaldehyde 1998 July 1, 1999 March 29, 2000 271 biphenyl 1998 July 1, 1999 March 29, 2000 271 diethanolamine 1998 July 1, 1999 March 29, 2000 271 On March 24, 2003, a letter addressing the above late reporting violations was sent to the company in an effort to gain more insight into the circumstances concerning the above violations. Based on the information provided by Oxford Textile Inc. (Oxford) on May 12, 2003, it was determined that Oxford had �processed and otherwise used� (as defined in 40 C.F.R. � 372.3) 36,888 lbs. of phosphoric acid and 139,220 lbs. of formaldehyde during 1998. Oxford also processed 27,939 lbs. of biphenyl and 21,518 lbs. of diethanolamine in 1998. Although the company untimely filed a 1998 Form R report for diethanolamine, they were not required to report since they did not exceed the 25,000 lb. processing threshold for the chemical. These three failures to submit Form R reports, in a timely manner, constitute violations 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 ERP for Section 313 of EPCRA issued by the USEPA Office of Compliance Monitoring, Office of Pesticides and Toxic Substances, on August 10, 1992. If we issued an Administrative Complaint the proposed penalty would be $13,101. EPA and Oxford agreed that settling this matter by entering into this Consent Agreement and Final Order pursuant to 40 C.F.R. � 22.13(b) and 40 C.F.R. � 22.18(b)(2) and (3), is an appropriate means of resolving this case without further litigation. To that end, the parties conducted informal settlement discussions on June 3 through June 12, 2003 between Mr. Ray A. Ferrara, Environmental Consultant for Oxford and Ms. Aarti Reddy of the Pesticides and Toxic Substances Branch. Mr. Ferrara assured us that the company would continue to comply in a timely fashion. A 50% reduction was allowed for the voluntary self-disclosure. Due to Respondent's willingness to settle this matter in an expeditious manner without the issuance of a formal administrative complaint, an additional 10% reduction was allowed under the as justice may require portion of the ERP, in consideration of the savings to the Agency in time and the costs of litigation. A final 15% reduction was allowed under the �as justice may require� portion of the ERP in consideration of Region 2's late reporter initiative to expeditiously address the nearly 800 late Form R reports filed in reporting years 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000 by facilities in Region 2. This 75% reduction would bring the new proposed penalty to $3,275. However, phosphoric acid was delisted as a TRI (Toxic Release Inventory) chemical in 1999 and according to the Enforcement Response Policy (ERP), an additional 25% penalty reduction is appropriate where the TRI chemical has been delisted. This additional 25% reduction in penalty for the phosphoric acid violation brings the final proposed penalty to $2,184. Oxford has agreed to pay $2,184. This penalty was reduced in accordance with the Enforcement Response Policy for Section 313 of EPCRA. In order to reach an equitable settlement, we propose to accept a reduced penalty of $2,184 and have prepared the Consent Agreement and Final Order accordingly.

Defendants (1)

• Oxford Textile Inc.Named in complaintNamed in settlement

Facilities (1)

• OXFORD TEXTILE INC.

  1 WALL ST, OXFORD, NJ, 07863

  Registry ID: 110001538051

Statutes cited

• EPCRA 313 — Toxic Chemical Release Reporting (TRI)

Enforcement conclusions (1)

• Oxford Textile Inc.entered 2003-07-28

  Primary law: EPCRA

  Federal penalty: $2,184

Timeline (4 milestones)

• 2003-07-28Enforcement Action Closed
• 2003-07-28Complaint Filed/Proposed Order
• 2003-07-28Final Order Issued
• 2003-08-01Enforcement Action Data Entered