EPA v. UTILITY TRAILER MANUFACTURING COMPANY

Case summary

UTILITY TRAILER MANUFACTURING COMPANY, INC. MANUFACTURES TRUCK TRAILERS IN ITS CITY OF INDUSTRY, CALIFORNIA FACILITY. IT IS LOCATED IN A NONATTAINMENT AREA FOR OZONE WHICH HAS RECEIVED AN EXTENSION FOR COMPLIANCE UNTIL 1987. UTILITY TRAILER IS A TEXAS CORPORATION REGISTERED AS DOING BUSINESS IN CA, WITH CORPORATE HQ IN THE CITY OF INDUSTRY, CA. UTILITY VIOLATED THE CALIFORNIA STATE IMPLEMENTATION PLAN IN THAT THE COATINGS USED ON ITS TRUCK TRAILERS CONTAIN MORE VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS THAN ALLOWED BY SOUTH COAST AIR QUALITY MANAGEMENT DISTRICT (SCAQMD) RULE 1107. A JOINT EPA AND SCAQMD INSPECTION OF THE FACILITY ON 12/6/84, FOUND THE COMPANY TO BE IN COMPLIANCE WITH RULE 1107. SUBSEQUENT INFORMATION SUBMITTED BY UTILITY TRAILER INDICATED THAT THE COR. WAS NOT IN COMPL. WITH RULE 1107'S FINAL & MORE STRIN- GENT LIMITS, WHICH BECAME EFFECT 1/1/85. UTILITY LISTED IN BY CDS AS A SIGNIFICANT VIOLATOR. EPA ISSUED AN NOV TO UTIL ITY ON 9/19/85. UTILITY HAS SUBMITTED TO R9 A PROPOSED COMP- LIANCE PLAN THAT WOULD BRING THE FACILITY INTO COMPLIANCE WITH SCAQMD RULE 1107 BY THE END OF 1986. COM- PLIANCE WILL BE ACHIEVED EITHER BY CONVERSION OF THE COMPANY'S COATING PROCESSES TO LOW VOC COATINGS OR BY INSTALLATION OF ADD-ON EMISSIONS CONTROL TECHNOLOGY. TRAILER BODY PARTS TO BE COATED AT UTILITY TRAILER ARE MADE OF STEEL. THESE PARTS ARE COATED IN ONE OF FOUR SPRAY BOOTHS, WHICH ARE EQUIPPED WITH ELECTROSTATIC SPRAY GUNS. BECAUSE OF THEIR LARGE SIZE, THE PARTS ARE THEN AIR-DRIED AT AMBIENT TEMPERATURE. COATINGS USED IN THE PLANT ARE A PRIMER, TOPCOATS, AND A RUST INHIBITING COATING, NONE OF WHICH COMPLIES WITH THE LIMITS OF RULE 1107. EPA CONDUCTED AN INSPECTION OF THE FACILITY ON 12/6/84. SAMPLES OF THREE COATINGS USED IN THE PLANT WERE TAKEN AND ANALYZED BY THE SCAQMD LAB. THESE COATINGS WERE FOUND TO CONTAIN 365,385, AND 395 GRAMS OF VOC PER LITER RESPECTIVELY DATA SHEETS PROVIDED TO THE INSPECTOR AT THE TIME OF THE INSPECTION SHOWED THAT OTHER COATINGS IN USE CONTAINED UP TO 419 G/L OF VOC. 4/8/85, EPA REQUESTED INFORMATION FROM UTILITY ABOUT ITS COMPLIANCE WITH THE 1/1/85 FINAL LIMITS. 5/24/85, EPA RECEIVED A DOCUMENT FROM UTILITY TRAILER IN RESPONSE TO EPA'S SECTION 114 LETTER. THE DOCUMENT STATES THAT UTILITY HAS NOT YET REACHED THE FINAL VOC LIMITS OF 340 GRAMS PER LITER. UTILITY ADMITS THAT IT WAS IN VIOLA- TION IN 5/85 USING COATINGS FROM THE SAME SUPPLIERS WHO FOR- MULATED THE COATINGS THAT WERE SAMPLED IN 12/84, WHICH EXCEEDED 340 GRAMS PER LITER OF VOC. THUS EPA CONCLUDES THAT THE COMPANY HAS BEEN IN VIOLATION OF THE 1/1/85 FINAL LIMITS SINCE THEY CAME INTO EFFECT. THE COMPLIANCE PLAN SUBMITTED BY UTILITY TRAILER PROVIDES FOR THE FOLLOWING: COMPLETE REFORMULATION OF PRIMER AND TOPCOATS AND COMMENCE PRODUCTION WITH THE NEW COMPLYING MATERIALS BY 4/28/86. COMPLETE REFORMULATION OF THE RUST INHIBITING COATING AND` COMMENCE PRODUCTION WITH THE NEW COMPLYING MATERIAL BY 6/25/ 86. DUE TO THE SIZE OF THE PARTS COATED BY UTILITY, MANY OF THE CONTROL OPTIONS DISCUSSED IN THE LITIGATION REPORT ARE NOT AVAILABLE TO THIS COMPANY. SINCE ALL OF THE PARTS MUST BE AIR DRIED, CONTROLLING OVEN EXHAUST IS NOT A FEASIBLE CONTROL OPTION. POWDER COATING OR DIP COATING OF PARTS WOULD PRESENT SOME UNIQUE TECHNICAL PROBLEMS. ASIDE FROM COMPLYING THROUGH REFORMULATION, CONTROL OF THE SPRAY BOOTH EXHAUST SHOULD BE CONSIDERED TO BE THE MOST FEASIBLE ALTERNATIVE.

Defendants (1)

• UTILITY TRAILOR MANUFACTURING COMPANYNamed in complaintNamed in settlement

Facilities (1)

• UTILITY TRAILER MANUFACTURING

  17300 CHESTNUT ST, CITY OF INDUSTRY, CA, 91714

  Registry ID: 110001200799

Statutes cited

• CAA 110 — Implementation Plan for National Primary and Secondary Ambient Air Quality Standards

Enforcement conclusions (1)

• UTILITY TRAILER MANUFACTURINGentered 1987-06-01

  Primary law: CAA

  Federal penalty: $20,000

Timeline (7 milestones)

• 1986-03-31Referred To Dept Of Justice
• 1986-06-25Referred TO U.S. Attorney
• 1986-06-30Complaint Filed With Court
• 1987-06-01Final Order Lodged
• 1987-06-01Final Order Entered
• 1987-06-01Concluded
• 1989-06-02Enforcement Action Closed