POET Biorefining LLC, in Glenville, Minnesota, exceeded its permitted storm water discharge limits.
This exceedance includes total suspended solids and carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand (CBOD), according to a Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) enforcement investigation, reported MPCA.
Additionally, the company: missed 10% of required sampling collection and reporting between March 2019 and March 2022; submitted monthly and annual reports late; missed flow meter calibrations; and missed storm water inspections, reported MPCA.
Resultantly, POET must pay a $12,029 civil penalty to the MPCA and develop and implement revised operating plans.
According to MPCA, “MPCA rules and regulations are designed to protect human health and the environment by limiting pollution emissions and discharges from facilities. When companies do not fully comply with regulatory requirements, the resulting pollution can be harmful to people and the environment.”
Additionally, MPCA adds that it takes into account how seriously the violations affected or could have affected the environment, and whether they were first-time or repeat in order to calculate penalties. MPCA “also attempts to recover the economic benefit the company gained by failing to comply with environmental laws in a timely manner,” according to the release.
These exceedances occurred over a three-year period at Glenville ethanol facility.
POET LLC is a U.S. biofuel company that specializes in the creation of bioethanol, and is a privately held corporation originally called Broin Companies, headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
