EPA v. BROOKS FOUNDRY, INC.

Case summary

THE PREREFERRAL LITIGATION REPORT CONCERNING BROOKS FOUN- DRY, INC. REQUESTING THAT A CIVIL ACTION BE BROUGHT AGAINST BROOKS FOUNDRY, INC. ( BF ) BECAUSE BF CONTINUES TO STORE AND/OR DISPOSE OF ITS HAZARDOUS WASTES ON-SITE WITHOUT A RCRA PERMIT AND WITHOUT OBTAINING INTERIM STATUS. DEFENDANT AND ENFORCEMENT HISTORY: BF OPERATES A GREY IRON FOUNDRY IN ALBION, MICH. IN THE COURSE OF ITS FOUNDRY OPERATIONS, BF GENERATES HAZARDOUS WASTE WITH THEY ARE CURRENTLY STORING OR DISPOSING OF IN AN ON-SITE WASTE PILE AND AN ON-SITE SURFACE IMPOUNDMENT. THE HAZARDOUS WASTE IS EP TOXIC FOR LEAD AND IS GENERATED BY BROOKS' WET SCRUBBER (A WET SCRUBBER IS USED BY FOUNDRIES TO CONTROL AIR EMISSIONS). BF DID NOT ACHIEVE INTERIM STATUS OR RECIEVE A RCRA PER- MIT FOR THE STORAGE AND/OR DISPOSAL OF ANY OF ITS HAZARDOUS WASTES AS REQUIRED BY SECT 3005 OF RCRA. INTERIM STATUS WAS NOT ACHIEVED BECAUSE BF FAILED TO FILE A PART A PERMIT APPLI CATION BY NOV. 19, 1980. IN ADDITION, BF FAILED TO FILE A PART B PERMIT APPLICATION AND FAILED TO CERTIFY BY NOV 9, 19 85 THAT ITS FACILITY WAS IN COMPLIANCE WITH ALL APPLICABLE GROUNDWATER MONITORING AND FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY REQUIRE- MENTS AS SET FORTH IN SECT 3005(E2) OF RCRA. FAILURE TO COM PLY WITH THE NOVEMBER 9, 1985 DEADLINE SUBJECTS THE FACILITY TO THE LOSS OF INTERIM STATUS PROVISIONS OF THAT SECT, WHICH REQUIRE THE CLOSURE OF ALL LAND DISPOSAL UNITS. SUMMARY OF VIOLATIONS: APPARENTLY, THERE ARE THREE FOUNDRIES IN THE U.S. THAT MANUFACTURE COUNTERWEIGHT CASTINGS. COUNTERWEIGHT CASTINGS ARE HEAVY LEAD WEIGHTS PLACED ON LARGE MACHINERY TO BALANCE THE WEIGHT OF THE MACHINCE. USEPA DISCOVERED THAT ONE OF THESE FOUNDRIES, KURDZIEL IRON INDUSTRIES, WAS GENERATING AND DISPOSING OF HAZARDOUS WASTES ON-SITE IN VIOLATION OF RCRA. DURING NEGOTIATIONS WITH KURDZIEL IRON INDUSTRIES, KURDZIEL IDENTIFIED FOR USEPA ITS TWO COMPETITORS, ONE OF WHICH IS BF, AS POSSIBLY ALSO OPERATING A HAZARDOUS WASTE MANAGEMENT FACILITY IN VIOLATION OF RCRA. AS A RESULT OF THE INFORMATION RECEIVED FROM KURDZIEL IRON INDUSTRIES, ON SEPT. 30, 1986, THE MICHIGAN DEPT OF NATURAL RESOURCE (MDNR) WROTE TO BF AND REQUESTED THAT BF ANALYZE THEIR WASTE TO DETERMINE IF ANY WASTE WAS HAZARDOUS. IN ADDITION, ON FEBRUARY 13, 1987, USEPA SENT AN INFORMATION RE QUEST TO BF SEEKING INFORMATION FROM BF CONCERNING THE POSSI BLE HAZARDOUS CHARACTERISTICS OF THEIR WASTES. BF RESPONDED TO BOTH MDNR AND USEPA BY CLAIMING THAT THE WASTE THEY GENERATED WAS NON-HAZARDOUS. IN ADDITION, BF ENCLOSED ANALYSES WHICH INDICATED THAT THEIR WASTE WAS NON- HAZARDOUS, WHEN BOTH OF ITS COMPETITORS, KURDZIEL IRON INDUS TRIES AND JOHNSON IRON INDUSTRIES, MANUFACTURED THE SAME PRO DUCT IN ESSENTIALLY THE SAME MANNER AND DID GENERATE HAZARD- OUS WASTE. IN AN EFFORT TO RESOLVE THIS APPARENT CONFLICT, USEPA ON SEPT. 15, 1987, HIRED A CONTRACTOR TO SAMPLE AND ANALYZE THE WASTE GENERATED BY BF. THIS SAMPLING AND THE RE SULTING ANALYSES INDICATED THAT THE WASTE GENERATED BY BF WAS EP TOXIC FOR LEAD, AND THUS HAZARDOUS UNDER RCRA. BASED UPON USEPA'S SAMPLING RESULTS, IT APPEARS THAT BF IS STORING OR DISPOSING OF HAZARDOUS WASTE ON-SITE IN BOTH A WASTE PILE AND A SURFACE IMPOUNDMENT.

Defendants (1)

• BROOKS FOUNDRYNamed in complaint

Facilities (1)

• BROOKS FOUNDRY INCORPORATED

  1712 EAST MICHIGAN AVENUE, ALBION, MI, 49224

  Registry ID: 110001102574

Statutes cited

• RCRA 3008 — Res Conserv & Rec Act
• CERCLA 107 — Superfund

Timeline (6 milestones)

• 1988-09-13Enforcement Action Data Entered
• 1988-09-16Referred To Headquarters
• 1988-09-16Referred To Dept Of Justice
• 1989-03-21Complaint Filed With Court
• 1989-04-24Concluded
• 1989-04-24Enforcement Action Closed