The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reached settlements involving alleged Clean Air Act violations at three facilities in Southern Louisiana. These actions are part of the EPA's initiative to address environmental justice concerns in affected communities. The cases involve unauthorized emissions of chemicals and other regulatory breaches.
"Many communities in Southern Louisiana live with a daily burden of pollution that would be unimaginable in other areas," said Regional Administrator Dr. Earthea Nance. "EPA worked directly with these residents and used a variety of tools to assess potential violations from permitted facilities."
The facilities involved include DuPont Pontchartrain Works petrochemical facility in LaPlace, Vopak, Inc., in Hahnville, and Westlake Chemical (formerly Axiall) in Lake Charles. These inspections were conducted under the Pollution Accountability Team, an enforcement project following Administrator Michael S. Regan’s Journey to Justice tour.
DuPont's settlement involves a civil penalty of $480,000 for violations such as unauthorized emissions from a benzene storage tank and non-compliance with regulatory requirements for an open-ended line. The company is required to install advanced equipment on the benzene storage tank, enhance monitoring using EPA Method 21 and Optical Gas Imaging, conduct a third-party audit of vents storing benzene or Group 1 liquids, maintain recordkeeping and reporting requirements, and update permits as necessary.
Vopak's settlement includes a civil penalty of $168,000 for unauthorized emissions from external floating roof tanks identified using EPA’s geospatial measurement technology. The facility must perform quarterly inspections of each floating roof tank, undergo a permit and operations review by an independent auditor, and complete site-specific corrective actions.
Westlake faces a civil penalty of $825,000 for startup/shutdown/malfunction requirement violations and unauthorized emissions. The company is required to submit a performance testing plan for its thermal oxidizers, provide EPA with details on pressure relief devices used for hazardous air pollutants, conduct monitoring over ten months, and ensure compliance with all regulatory requirements related to startup/shutdown/malfunction plans.
Further information on the Journey to Justice can be found at https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/journey-justice.
Details about the Pollution Accountability Team project are available at https://www.epa.gov/la/pollution-accountability-team.
