EPA v. Polar Environmental Services, Inc.

Case summary

On June 29, 2016, EPA Region 5 filed a Consent Agreement and Final Order (CAFO) with Polar Environmental Service, Inc. of Ferndale, Michigan to commence and conclude an action alleging violations of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Polar previously operated as a used oil processor by reclaiming usable product from a variety of customer waste streams including oily wastewater, coolant water, and metalworking fluids. During an inspection in August 2011, Polar was found to be in violation of several requirements applicable to used oil processors and to have operated as a hazardous waste storage facility without a license. Polar failed to have adequate contingency and used oil analysis plans, to properly label its processing tanks, and to have secondary containment for its processing tanks that could prevent used oil from reaching surface soils. Additionally, Polar failed to rebut the presumption that used oil managed in several on-site tanks had been mixed with halogenated hazardous waste. Polar did not have a license to store hazardous waste and the tanks in which the waste was stored were not equipped with the necessary engineering controls to manage hazardous waste. The CAFO requires that Polar complete RCRA tank closure for the tanks that stored hazardous waste and to pay a civil penalty of $42,700. Polar has also committed to an environmental restoration Supplemental Environmental Project (SEP) to remove all remaining processing tanks on site and conduct a subsurface investigation in the areas formerly occupied by these tanks. The SEP is valued at $218,000.

Defendants (1)

• Polar Environmental Services, Inc.Named in complaintNamed in settlement

Facilities (1)

• POLAR ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES

  707 E LEWISTON AVE, FERNDALE, MI, 48220-1452

  Registry ID: 110001441930

Statutes cited

• RCRA 3014 — Restrictions on Recycled Oil
• RCRA 3004 — Hazardous Waste Treatment, Storage, and Disposal Standards

Enforcement conclusions (1)

• Polar Environmental Services, Inc.entered 2016-06-29

  Primary law: RCRA

  Federal penalty: $42,700 · SEP: $218,950

Timeline (3 milestones)

• 2016-06-29Complaint Filed/Proposed Order
• 2016-06-29Final Order Issued
• 2016-07-08Enforcement Action Data Entered