Practical EHS Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
After reviewing the evidence presented in Pamela Stone, et al. v. High Mountain Mining Company LLC et al., Colorado Federal Judge William J. Martínez ordered High Mountain to pay $500,000 in fines for Clean Water Act (CWA) violations. Wyoming-based High Mountain owns and operates the Alma Placer Mine, a gold placer mine located near Alma, […]
On May 19, the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) announced a combined $1,753,375 in fines for the Valero Refinery of Benicia and 3 of its contractors following an investigation into the confined space death of a 35-year-old worker. On November 12, 2021, a worker lost consciousness after descending into a regenerator overflow […]
Each year, the EPA publishes annual inflationary increases to the fine amounts for civil penalties assessed under its authority.
What have OSHA’s compliance officers been up to lately? Take a look at some of the more significant enforcement cases from the past several months to find out. From the usual suspects like fall hazards and excavations to some less typical cases, recent enforcement activity illustrates the importance of a strong safety and health program […]
In Q3, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized 158 settlement agreements with companies small and large across the United States. There was a definitive increase in enforcement actions, with only 106 penalties issued in the previous quarter. Here we highlight some of the biggest fines.
OSHA cited four Idaho Dollar Tree locations for blocked walkways and exit routes and unsafe storage of merchandise. The agency has proposed penalties totaling $898,682.
The applicability of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Risk Management Program (RMP) is reasonably clear, but facilities with chemicals in amounts less than the RMP thresholds are finding themselves in trouble with the EPA because they are overlooking EPA’s General Duty Clause (42 U.S. Code 7412(r)(1)). Several times over the last 6 months the […]
OSHA has proposed penalties of $287,212 in its citation of a Long Island, New York, manufacturer. OSHA cited U.S. Nonwovens Corp., a home and personal care fabric product manufacturer with a facility in Hauppauge, New York, for nine serious and four repeat safety and health violations.
Although delayed by the government shutdown, the EPA has finalized regulations adjusting its civil penalties to account for inflation. Therefore, effective February 6, 2019, the maximum civil penalties that the EPA may impose for violations of various environmental statutes have increased by just over 1 percent.