Electric-car maker Tesla Motors Inc. will pay $275,000 in fines for violating the federal Clean Air Act at its manufacturing facility in Fremont, Calif., the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced last month.
Tesla was determined to have violated federal regulations governing emissions standards for toxic air pollutants related to the surface coating it applied to its vehicles. The violations of the regulations, known as National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Surface Coating of Automobiles and Light-Duty Trucks, occurred from October 2016 through September 2019, the EPA reports.
"People living in communities that are near sources of hazardous air pollutants may face significant risks to their health and environment," EPA states in the Feb. 22 announcement.
The Tesla facility in the case applied coating materials that contain formaldehyde, ethylbenzene, naphthalene and xylene. These chemicals are considered hazardous air pollutants "known or suspected to cause cancer or other serious health effects," according to EPA.
Tesla was found to have violated the Clean Air Act by failing to create and implement a plan to minimize toxic air emissions; failing to conduct monthly emissions tests to show the facility was in compliance with federal regulations; and failing to collect and retain records related to emissions rates of hazardous pollutants, according to the announcement.
“Today’s enforcement action against Tesla reflects EPA’s continued commitment to ensure compliance with federal clean air laws,” Martha Guzman, the EPA’s Pacific Southwest regional administrator, said in the announcement.
Tesla has corrected the violations noted in the settlements and returned to compliance, the EPA reports.
