Manager arrested, company cited for enviro violations

Jan. 29 -- An environmental manager for Tonawanda Coke Corp. has been arrested and several environmental allegations have been made against the company following a lengthy investigation by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

The environmental agencies accused the coal processing company of violating the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act and state pollution laws at its Tonawanda, N.Y., facility.

EPA said the company’s environmental control manager was arrested on criminal charges filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Western District of New York and the Department of Justice, Environmental Crimes Section. The company official failed to notify the appropriate government agency of a release of coal tar sludge at the TCC facility. The sludge, released as a result of a failed decommissioning of two storage tanks, ignited. The charges carry a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment, a fine of $50,000 per day of violation, or both.

For more information about EPA’s actions at TCC and related legal documents, visit http://www.epa.gov/region02/capp/tonawanda.html.

Contact Waste & Recycling News reporter Amanda Smith-Teutsch at 330-865-6166 or asmith-teutsch@crain.com