The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Justice have reached a settlement with Manitowoc Company, Inc., along with its subsidiaries Grove U.S. L.L.C. and Manitowoc Crane Group Germany GmbH, over violations of the Clean Air Act's mobile source emission standards regulations. The agreement mandates that Manitowoc pay a civil penalty of $42.6 million.
The allegations against Manitowoc involve importing and selling heavy nonroad cranes equipped with diesel engines that were not certified to meet the Clean Air Act emission standards. This resulted in excess emissions of carcinogenic diesel exhaust containing nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter.
"For years, Manitowoc imported and sold diesel engines that do not meet Clean Air Act emission standards, even after EPA made clear that such brazen conduct would not be tolerated," stated Assistant Administrator David M. Uhlmann for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. He emphasized the health risks associated with diesel exhaust, including asthma and respiratory illness.
Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim from the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division commented on the settlement: "Manitowoc’s sale and importation of cranes with uncertified engines violated Clean Air Act requirements designed to protect public health from harmful diesel emissions."
As part of the settlement, Manitowoc is required to retrofit a short-line locomotive engine currently operating in Sparrows Point, Maryland, near the Port of Baltimore where these cranes were imported. The retrofitting will involve replacing an old engine with a new one equipped with modern emission controls to improve air quality along a 70-mile track path affecting underserved communities.
The complaint highlights that between 2014 and 2018, Manitowoc introduced at least 1,032 non-compliant diesel engines into U.S. commerce without EPA-issued certificates or qualifying exemptions. The company also failed to adhere to labeling, bonding, and reporting requirements under the Clean Air Act.
The proposed consent decree is lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin and awaits a 30-day public comment period followed by final court approval.
Further details are available on both the Justice Department’s Proposed Consent Decree webpage and the Manitowoc Clean Air Act Settlement Summary webpage.