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SAN FRANCISCO – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) today announced a settlement with the Grindstone Indian Rancheria of Wintun-Wailaki Indians in Glenn County, Calif., that requires the Tribe to take immediate action to address issues with its drinking water system and comply with the federal Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). The Tribe owns and operates the Grindstone Rancheria public water system, which is designed to serve treated surface water from Stony Creek to 150 residents.

“This settlement is critical to protecting public health at the Grindstone Indian Rancheria, so people there have access to clean and safe drinking water,” said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman. “Ensuring that small community water systems like this one provide safe drinking water is a national priority for EPA, especially in communities that face environmental justice concerns.”

Under today’s settlement, the Tribe must:

• Develop and issue a boil water notice as needed to address certain contaminants in residents’ drinking water.
• Achieve and demonstrate compliance with federal standards to treat surface water for the Tribe’s water tanks and distribution lines.
• Provide an alternative supply of clean drinking water as needed to affected residents.
• Develop an operation and maintenance plan for the Tribal drinking water system and hire two operators to run the system.
• Meet annual reporting requirements and approve an annual budget for the drinking water system’s operation.
• Pay a $8,963 penalty.

EPA and the Tribe entered into an administrative order on consent in December 2017 for violations of the SDWA at the drinking water system, and EPA issued an emergency administrative order in June 2019 after finding the Tribe failed to adequately disinfect drinking water at the system, posing an imminent and substantial threat to human health. To date, the Tribe has failed to comply with the requirements for both EPA orders. The Tribe has incurred numerous violations of the SDWA, including failing to ensure adequate disinfection, exceeding standards for E. coli, failing to collect routine samples for contaminants, failing to ensure the system is operated by a qualified operator, and failing to comply with public notification requirements.

Since 2020, one of EPA’s National Enforcement and Compliance Initiatives has focused on ensuring delivery of safe drinking water to communities by improving compliance with the SDWA and fostering greater collaboration between EPA and states, tribes, and territories to create a more effective national program. An additional focus of this national initiative is to increase EPA’s enforcement and compliance assurance capacity in order to work more effectively with states, tribes, and territories to meet our shared goal of addressing drinking water violations and risks to public health.

Today’s settlement is subject to a 30-day public comment period. Visit DOJ’s website to read the proposed settlement and for information on how to submit a comment.

Read more about this National Enforcement and Compliance Initiative on EPA’s website.

For more information on reporting possible violations of environmental laws and regulations, visit EPA’s enforcement reporting website.

Learn about EPA’s Pacific Southwest Region. Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and X. 

DALLAS, TEXAS (April 8, 2024) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently finalized a settlement with Sasol Chemicals (Sasol) over alleged violations of the chemical accident prevention provisions of the Clean Air Act at the company’s facility in Westlake, Louisiana. Under the settlement, Sasol will pay more than $1.4 million in civil penalties and correct violations related to an October 2022 fire at the facility, as well as those found during a compliance evaluation in 2021. The facility is adjacent to the Mossville community, which Administrator Michael Regan visited on his Journey to Justice tour.

“The Mossville community has organized and fought for generations to protect their families from environmental impacts to people’s health and EPA is ready to build on that work by holding companies like Sasol accountable,” said Regional Administrator Dr. Earthea Nance. “Sasol and other industrial polluters must prioritize the safety of the fenceline community and their workers by following all chemical accident-prevention laws.”

Residents of the historic community of Mossville, founded by formerly enslaved people in the 1790s, live on the fence line of Sasol Chemicals and close to many other industrial facilities. Families here experience a daily pollution burden from these facilities, and many have been affected by cancer and other serious diseases. Administrator Michael Regan visited Mossville and other environmental justice communities on his Journey to Justice tour to listen to their stories and concerns. Through the resolution of this case, EPA is furthering the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to advancing environmental justice by enforcing stronger safety requirements for industrial facilities and requiring new measures to protect communities.

From January through July 2021, EPA conducted a Virtual Partial Compliance Evaluation (VPCE) of the Sasol facility under chemical accident prevention requirements of the Clean Air Act, including Section 112(r) and the General Duty Clause. On October 15, 2022—during the process to settle alleged violations found during the evaluation—a fire occurred at Sasol that resulted in a shelter-in-place order for the Westlake area. The settlement announced today addresses violations from the evaluation and the fire.

Under the settlement, Sasol will pay a civil penalty of $1,441,712.00. Sasol will also undertake several actions to resolve alleged violations, such as improving systems and procedures to assure timely completion of the Process Hazardous Analysis recommendations, improving inspections and procedures to maintain mechanical integrity of process equipment, addressing and resolving overdue compliance audits findings, improving safety systems designed to detect potential hazards, updating written and operating procedures to ensure the safe conducting of work activities, and improving implementation practices of operating procedures at the facility.

The injunctive relief in the settlement aligns with new amendments to the Risk Management Program announced on  March 1, 2024, that require stronger measures for prevention, preparedness, and public transparency. The “Safer Communities by Chemical Accident Prevention Rule” protects the health and safety of all communities by requiring industry to prevent accidental releases of dangerous chemicals that could cause deaths and injuries, damage property and the environment, or require surrounding communities to evacuate or shelter-in-place. The rule requires regulated facilities to perform a safer technologies and alternatives analysis, and in some cases, facilities will be required to implement reliable safeguard measures. Under this settlement, Sasol will develop and implement safe work practices for the pressure testing of related process equipment to avoid further chemical accidental releases like the fire and shelter-in-place that occurred on October 15, 2022.

Improving compliance with Section 112(r) of the Clean Air Act Amendments is part of EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance National Enforcement and Compliance Initiative of chemical accident risk reduction. Under Section 112(r), EPA publishes regulations and guidance for chemical accident prevention at facilities that use certain hazardous substances. These regulations and guidance are contained in the Risk Management Program rule, which requires facilities that use extremely hazardous substances to develop a Risk Management Plan which:

• identifies the potential effects of a chemical accident,
• identifies steps the facility is taking to prevent an accident, and
• spells out emergency response procedures should an accident occur.

To learn more about the Clean Air Act’s accident prevention provisions, see https://www.epa.gov/rmp.

Connect with the Environmental Protection Agency Region 6 on Facebook, X (formerly known as Twitter), or visit our homepage.

Atlanta (April 8, 2024) – D.R. Horton, Inc., the nation’s largest homebuilder, and its subsidiary, D.R. Horton, Inc. – Birmingham (collectively “Horton”), have resolved allegations that they violated requirements of the Clean Water Act (CWA) relating to stormwater discharges associated with construction activity at 16 locations in Alabama, North Carolina, and South Carolina. Under the proposed consent decree, Horton will implement a comprehensive stormwater compliance program at the many hundreds of home construction sites they operate within EPA Region 4 and will pay a civil penalty of $400,000, a portion of which will be directed to the Alabama Department of Environmental Management and the State of South Carolina, who joined this settlement. Horton will also commit to spend at least $400,000 on a Supplemental Environmental Project to improve water quality by decreasing pollutant loads in stormwater runoff through increases in stormwater infiltration.

“All homebuilders, including Horton, must comply with Clean Water Act provisions to prevent waterways from being contaminated by sediment discharges and other pollutants from stormwater runoff,” said Acting EPA Region 4 Administrator Jeaneanne Gettle. “This consent decree was developed with Horton, along with the cooperation of state agencies, to ensure that Horton implements a comprehensive stormwater management program at the many hundreds of home construction sites they operate across the Southeast to protect nearby waterways and the communities that live along them.”

The injunctive relief measures set forth in the proposed consent decree are designed to result in effective stormwater runoff management at Horton’s construction sites and will result in an estimated annual reduction of 45.5 million pounds of total suspended solids in affected waters.

The consent decree, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Southern Division, is subject to a 30-day public comment period and approval by the federal court. The consent decree can be viewed on the Department of Justice website.

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SAN FRANCISCO (April 4, 2024) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has overseen the restoration of safe drinking water to over 900 residents living in 20 mobile home parks located within the boundaries of the Torres Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians Reservation in the Eastern Coachella Valley, located in Southern California.

“EPA is committed to protecting the health of our communities, including those that have historically faced unequal environmental burdens, by ensuring their drinking water is safe and reliable,” said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman. “We will continue to fully utilize our authority to make sure that safe drinking water standards are met.”

EPA Actions

In 2020, EPA began investigating numerous mobile home parks located within the Torres Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians Reservation for compliance with the arsenic limits under the Safe Drinking Water Act. This work is part of EPA’s overall increased focus on the area, including enforcement efforts related to drinking water at Oasis Mobile Home Park, DD Mobile Home Park, and Indian Village Mobile Home Park. To date, EPA has identified another 20 mobile home parks within the Reservation, housing approximately 920 people, with drinking water that comes from groundwater and therefore may contain arsenic levels above the federal limit. Of the 20 mobile home parks, only 13 parks’ drinking water systems were previously regulated by the County of Riverside. Seven of the 20 mobile home parks’ drinking water systems, serving 287 people, had never been subject to regulatory oversight, had no regulated arsenic treatment systems in place, and had no information about the current condition of the drinking water being served.     

As a result of the information gathered, EPA rapidly developed a comprehensive approach to address the needs of the communities living in these 20 mobile home parks, including EPA funded sampling efforts, enforcement actions, compliance assistance, and a partnership with a local non-profit organization, Pueblo Unido Community Development Corporation (PUCDC). From December 2021 through September 2022, EPA issued Safe Drinking Water Act Emergency Administrative Orders to nine mobile home parks where the arsenic levels in the drinking water exceeded the federal limit of 10 parts per billion. Each Emergency Administrative Order required the provision of safe alternative water, installation of regulated arsenic treatment systems, and compliance with all other Safe Drinking Water Act standards and regulations. While pursuing these enforcement actions, EPA, in coordination with PUCDC, provided compliance assistance to the other mobile home parks to ensure their drinking water would comply with federal law, including the arsenic limits and all necessary monitoring and reporting requirements.

As a result of these combined efforts, EPA has overseen the installation of point-of-use arsenic treatment devices in over 220 homes. EPA recently released six mobile home parks from their Emergency Administrative Orders – Arellano, Castro Ranch, Desert Rose, Gamez, Gonzalez, and Sandoval – because of their return to compliance with the arsenic limit and other Order requirements as listed above. EPA continues to monitor the progress of the mobile home parks still under Emergency Administrative Orders and to provide compliance assistance to all 20 mobile home parks.

Background on Eastern Coachella Valley

The Eastern Coachella Valley region, including towns such as Mecca, North Shore, Oasis, and Thermal, is home to a predominantly Latino and Indigenous population facing significant socioeconomic challenges. The region experiences some of the highest rates of poverty and unemployment in the nation, and those who are employed often work outdoors in the agricultural sector and are therefore exposed to climate-related threats such as extreme heatwaves.

Environmental conditions exacerbate many of the socioeconomic issues in the Eastern Coachella Valley. In addition to air and water quality issues, many areas have naturally occurring arsenic in groundwater. Exposure to arsenic may result in both acute and chronic health effects. Arsenic is a known carcinogen and drinking high levels of water containing arsenic over many years can increase the chance of lung, bladder, and skin cancers, as well as heart disease, diabetes, and neurological damage.

Learn how EPA’s Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water, together with states, tribes, and many other partners, protects public health by ensuring safe drinking water and protecting ground water.

Learn about EPA’s Pacific Southwest Region. Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and X.

Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a $120,000 settlement with Forge Group DeKalb LLC, known as DeKalb Forge Co., to resolve alleged failure to report  toxic chemical releases in DeKalb, Illinois, violating the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act, or EPCRA.

The company forges and shapes steel products using drop hammers and mechanical presses at their facility at 1832 Pleasant Street in DeKalb, Illinois. The EPA alleged the company failed to timely submit EPCRA forms to notify the agency about the release of  toxic chemicals such as chromium, manganese, and nickel during the forging and shaping process.

EPCRA requires facilities to report the storage, use, and releases of toxic chemicals. The information submitted is compiled in the Toxics Release Inventory, or TRI, that informs government agencies, the public and more about toxic chemical releases and pollution prevention activities reported by industrial and federal facilities. 

The facility is in a community with potential environmental justice concerns.  Environmental justice is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income, with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies.

For more information about the EPA’s enforcement program, visit the Agency’s website.

For more information about the Toxics Release Inventory, visit the EPA's TRI website.

HONOLULU – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has entered into an Administrative Order on Consent with the County of Hawai’i to ensure pollution discharge requirements are met at the Hilo, Pāpa‘ikou, and Kula‘imano Wastewater Treatment Plants in accordance with the Clean Water Act. The three plants are located on the island of Hawai‘i.

EPA identified significant operation and maintenance deficiencies which have affected the treatment systems, leading to violations of limitations on what the plants can discharge as well as sewer overflows. EPA has worked cooperatively with the County and Hawai’i Department of Health to identify needs for capital improvements, strengthened planning efforts, and asset management of the county’s wastewater infrastructure systems.

“This order ensures that the County of Hawai'i will prevent further harmful sewage discharges into the ocean, and fix its aging wastewater treatment plants,” said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman. “Compliance with the Clean Water Act is essential to protecting public health and Hawai‘i's cherished coastal waters. With our partners at Hawai‘i Department of Health, EPA will provide attentive oversight of Hawai‘i's wastewater improvements.”

The consent order requires the County of Hawai‘i to address broken equipment and deferred maintenance and to develop a program to systematically repair, rehabilitate, and replace aging infrastructure. The goal of these efforts is to prevent reoccurrence of sewage breaks and sewage spills. The order requirements include:

• Rehabilitate and repair the Hilo wastewater treatment plant
• Repair the Kula‘imano and Pāpa‘ikou treatment plants
• Design a new pipeline that conveys wastewater under pressure at Kealakehe
• Replace and repair the Hale Hālāwai and the Pua pipelines that convey wastewater under pressure
• Conduct a comprehensive condition assessment
• Complete an Integrated Master Plan for wastewater across the county
• Prepare a financial plan
• Update Operations and Maintenance manuals for all treatment systems
• Fully implement an Asset Management System for the county’s wastewater infrastructure
• Develop a Spill Response Plan to prevent and contain sewer spills
• Implement a preventative maintenance program for sewer lines to prevent spills

The County of Hawai‘i owns and operates the wastewater collection system and treatment plants, which include approximately 105 miles of gravity sewer lines, 14 miles of sewer force mains, 16 sewer pump stations, and six wastewater treatment plants. The EPA will work closely with the county to ensure all required actions are completed and implemented according to the order.

Read more about the EPA’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System and the Clean Water Act.

For more information on reporting possible violations of environmental laws and regulations, visit EPA’s enforcement reporting website.

Learn about EPA’s Pacific Southwest Region. Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and X.

SAN FRANCISCO – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced settlements with four automotive parts distributors to resolve claims of violations of the Clean Air Act. The Southern California companies – Domestic Gaskets, Mizumo Auto, PPE Inc., and Performance Parts – illegally manufactured or sold aftermarket auto parts, otherwise known as defeat devices, that exacerbate harmful air pollution by bypassing or disabling required emissions control systems. The companies paid $52,271 combined in penalties.

“These settlements represent our commitment to stopping the sale of illegal defeat devices, which worsen harmful pollution and disproportionately impact communities with environmental justice concerns,” said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman. “We will continue to investigate and penalize anyone who manufactures, sells, or installs these types of illegal products.”

Domestic Gaskets, located in El Monte, California, sells and distributes motor vehicle parts to customers throughout the United States. The company was cited for 635 violations and will pay a penalty of $12,415 to settle those claims.

Mizumo Auto, also located in El Monte, sells and distributes motor vehicle parts to customers throughout the United States. The company was cited for 1,609 violations and will pay a penalty of $11,268 to settle those claims.

PPE Inc., located in Montclair, California, manufactures, sells, and distributes aftermarket parts to customers throughout the United States. The company was cited for 121 violations and will pay a penalty of $24,000 to settle those claims.

Performance Parts, located in El Monte, sells and distributes motor vehicle parts to customers throughout the United States. The company was cited for 1,055 violations and will pay a penalty of $4,588 to settle those claims.

It is a violation of the Clean Air Act to manufacture, sell, or install a part for a motor vehicle that bypasses, defeats, or renders inoperative any emission control device. For example, computer software that alters diesel fuel injection timing is an illegal defeat device. Defeat devices, which are often sold to enhance engine performance, work by disabling a vehicle's emission controls, causing air pollution. As a result of EPA enforcement, some of the largest manufacturers of defeat devices have agreed to pay penalties and stop the sale of defeat devices.

The practice of tampering with vehicles by installing defeat devices can enable large emissions of nitrogen oxides and particulate matter, both of which contribute to serious health problems in the United States. These include premature mortality, aggravation of respiratory and cardiovascular disease, aggravation of existing asthma, acute respiratory symptoms, chronic bronchitis, and decreased lung function. Respiratory issues like these disproportionately affect families, especially children, living in underserved communities overburdened by pollution. 

Help protect our environment by identifying and reporting environmental violations. 

Learn about EPA’s Pacific Southwest Region. Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and X.

LENEXA, KAN. (MARCH 28, 2024) – Scrap Management LLC, doing business as Rivers Edge Scrap Management of Kansas City, Kansas, will pay $144,500 in civil penalties to resolve alleged violations of the federal Clean Water Act.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the company failed to adequately control stormwater runoff from its scrap metal recycling and processing facility. EPA says that these failures could result in illegal discharges of pollution into the Kansas River.

“Uncontrolled runoff from scrap yards harms streams and rivers and limits the public’s use and enjoyment of those waters,” said David Cozad, director of EPA Region 7’s Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Division. “This settlement demonstrates EPA’s commitment to protecting vital watersheds in urban communities, especially in areas overburdened by pollution.

In the settlement documents, EPA alleges that Scrap Management failed to comply with certain terms of its Clean Water Act permit, including failure to update and implement practices to prevent runoff of pollution; failure to perform inspections; and failure to train employees on stormwater management practices.

In addition to paying the penalty, Scrap Management is correcting the alleged violations through implementation of an EPA compliance order.

EPA identified the community surrounding Scrap Management’s facility as a potentially sensitive location for multiple pollution sources. EPA is strengthening enforcement in such communities to address disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental effects of industrial operations on vulnerable populations.

Under the Clean Water Act, industrial facilities that propose to discharge into protected water bodies are required to obtain permits and follow the requirements outlined in those permits to reduce pollution runoff. Failure to obtain a permit or follow the requirements of a permit may violate federal law.

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Learn more about EPA’s enforcement of the Clean Water Act

Learn more about EPA Region 7

View all Region 7 news releases

Connect with EPA Region 7 on Facebook and Instagram

Follow us on X: @EPARegion7

BOSTON (Mar. 28, 2024) – The Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) initiative to prevent childhood lead poisoning in communities with a higher risk of lead exposure is coming to the greater Manchester, New Hampshire area. Lead is particularly harmful to children because they are more vulnerable to its effects, which include damage to the brain and nervous system.

The aim of the EPA's lead paint initiative is to reduce childhood lead exposure through increased awareness and improved compliance with federal lead paint requirements, in particular the Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) and Lead Disclosure Rules.

"If you live someplace built before 1978, which is quite possible in New England, be aware and share with family and friends how toxic old lead paint chips and dust can be for yourselves and your children," said EPA New England Regional Administrator David W. Cash. "EPA is excited to collaborate with state and local partners who continue to tackle this preventable issue - we will use all available tools possible, including assistance, enforcement, and grant opportunities focused on communities with environmental justice concerns."

"Infants and children are especially vulnerable to lead exposure, which can cause lifelong impacts including developmental impairment, learning disabilities, impaired hearing, reduced attention span, hyperactivity, and behavioral problems. When pregnant women are exposed to lead, it can impact their unborn children's health as well," said Iain Watt, Interim Director of the New Hampshire Division of Public Health Services.

"The City of Manchester is committed to ensuring that all children have the opportunity to thrive. Healthy housing is one part of that equation," said Mayor Jay Ruais. "To that end, in 2023 the Board of Mayor and Aldermen established the Manchester Lead Exposure Prevention Commission. This Commission, which is made up of community members from various disciplines and lived experience, will be working to identify strategies to reduce lead poisoning and increase lead hazard awareness and prevention in our community."

As part of the lead paint initiative in Manchester, inspectors will evaluate compliance with the Toxic Substances Control Act's lead paint RRP Rule, which is applicable to renovation job sites involving housing and child-occupied facilities built before 1978.

Field staff will also be checking to confirm that landlords, including property management and real estate companies, are providing prospective tenants or buyers with proper lead disclosure about the presence of lead-based paint and/or lead-based paint hazards. Lead disclosures are required, under Section 1018 of the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act, before the lease or sale of most housing built before 1978.

These efforts will be supported by an increased focus on education, outreach, and compliance assistance in the greater Manchester area and beyond to ensure that regulated parties and the public are aware of the federal lead-based paint requirements.

Background

EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule is designed to prevent children's exposure to lead-based paint and/or lead-based paint hazards resulting from renovation, repair and painting projects in pre-1978 residences, schools and other buildings where children are present. If lead painted surfaces are to be disturbed at a job site, the RRP Rule requires individual renovators to complete an initial 8-hour accredited training course and the company or firm that they work for to be certified by EPA. These baseline requirements are critical to ensuring that companies take responsibility for their employees following proper lead-safe work practices by containing and managing lead dust and chips created during such projects. Further, the RRP Rule requires that specific records be created and maintained to document compliance with the law.

EPA's Lead Disclosure Rule is designed to ensure that potential buyers and renters of housing built prior to 1978 receive certain information about lead-based paint and lead-based paint hazards in the residence prior to becoming obligated to buy or rent, and provides the opportunity for an independent lead inspection for buyers. Sellers, landlords, and agents are responsible for compliance.

More information

Lead

Protect Your Family from Sources of Lead

EPA Lead Enforcement

Report a Violation of Lead Paint Rules in New England

Environmental Justice grant opportunities:

Healthy Communities Grant Program

Community Change Grant Program

LENEXA, KAN. (MARCH 27, 2024) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved a work plan submitted to the Agency by Richard Minor of Gordon, Nebraska, and Cherry County, Nebraska, to mitigate damage to the Snake River resulting from an unauthorized drainage ditch excavated from Minor’s property to the river in 2020.

According to EPA, discharges from the ditch into the river caused extensive environmental harm and violated the federal Clean Water Act.

“The Snake River is a critical aquatic resource,” said David Cozad, director of EPA Region 7’s Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Division. “EPA is encouraged that Mr. Minor and Cherry County are taking steps to minimize further impacts to the Snake River and downstream property owners.”

According to EPA, in April 2020, Minor and Cherry County personnel excavated the drainage ditch to the Snake River to alleviate flooding, without first obtaining the required Clean Water Act permits.

Within days of completing the approximately 2½-mile ditch, rainfall rapidly eroded it, which resulted in massive amounts of sand being deposited into the Snake River. EPA says that millions of tons of sediment have flowed into the river since the ditch excavation.

Under an Administrative Compliance Order filed with EPA on June 14, 2021, Minor and Cherry County agreed to submit a work plan to mitigate the damage. After multiple delays by Minor and the county, EPA recently received an acceptable work plan, which was approved and finalized on Feb. 22, 2024.

EPA says that implementation of the work plan will take approximately one year, and will include:

• The placement of downed trees and woody debris to construct sediment trap structures along the ditch.
• Construction of earthen berms to prevent excessive flow of water and sediment.
• The placement of a series of woody debris fences and log structures along the ditch to trap sediment and create wildlife habitat.
• The installation of a riparian corridor, consisting of native species along sections of the river.

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Learn more about EPA’s enforcement of the Clean Water Act

Learn more about EPA Region 7

View all Region 7 news releases

Connect with EPA Region 7 on Facebook and Instagram

Follow us on X: @EPARegion7

BOSTON (March 26, 2024) – Recently, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reached a settlement with First Student, a company that owns, operates, and stores school buses throughout the United States, including in Connecticut. EPA alleges that the company violated federal clean air standards by allowing buses in two Connecticut locations to idle for excessive periods of time. Working cooperatively with EPA, First Student reached a settlement agreement and has developed a compliance program that is intended to reduce excessive idling of school buses.

"EPA works hard to ensure that communities can enjoy clean air each and every day. Companies that operate fleets of vehicles have an obligation to follow regulations to limit engine idling. Fumes from idling engines can aggravate health conditions like asthma for people living nearby, as well as emitting pollutants that degrade air quality over a wider area, and cause climate change," said EPA New England Regional Administrator David W. Cash. "Clean Air Act settlements, like this one, showcase our continued dedication to protecting people's health and our environment including in communities that have suffered from a disproportionate burden of environmental pollution." 

EPA inspected First Student's Weston, Conn. location and its West Harford, Conn. facility, which is in an environmentally overburdened area. EPA's inspections revealed the operation of school bus motors that went over the state's three-minute idling maximum, contained in the federally enforceable Connecticut State Implementation Plan.

Under the terms of the settlement the company has agreed to pay a penalty of $96,223 , and will implement various compliance measures, some of which apply in Connecticut and others that apply in additional jurisdictions where First Student operates. These measures include posting signage, training, and coaching. Also, First Student will conduct both ongoing assessments of their operations data, and consistent observations of their bus lots, in order to correct instances of excessive school bus idling.

Background

Idling diesel engines emit pollutants that can cause or aggravate a variety of health conditions, including asthma and other respiratory diseases. The fine particles in diesel exhaust are a likely carcinogen. Diesel exhaust not only contributes to area-wide air quality problems, but more direct exposure can cause lightheadedness, nausea, sore throat, coughing, and other symptoms. Drivers, school children riding on the buses, facility workers, neighbors and bystanders are all vulnerable. Idling also wastes fuel, contributing to carbon dioxide emissions that affect climate change.

The Clean Air Act is the law that defines EPA's responsibilities for protecting and improving the nation's air quality and the stratospheric ozone layer. The last major change in the law, the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, was enacted by Congress in 1990. Legislation passed since then has made several minor changes.

More information:

EPA School Bus Idle Reduction