Massachusetts Manufacturer to Pay Fine to Settle Clean Water Act Violations

A company in Billerica, Mass., that makes X-ray detection and related equipment agreed to pay $40,000 to settle U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) claims that it violated the federal Clean Water Act.

According to EPA’s New England office, American Science & Engineering (AS&E) violated the Clean Water Act by discharging without authorization storm water associated with industrial activity. The storm water was discharged into wetlands adjacent to a Shawsheen River tributary.

The Clean Water Act requires many industrial operations to have permits and controls in place to prevent pollutants from being discharged with storm water into nearby waterways. Each site must have a storm water pollution prevention plan that puts in place practices that the company will follow to prevent runoff from being contaminated by pollutants. Without these controls, storm water can pick up pollutants as it flows over the site. The storm water then can carry the pollutants to nearby waterways, where they can degrade water quality, as well as swimming, fishing and drinking water.

According to EPA, AS&E disclosed its violations and took some measures to minimize storm water runoff, but the company did not meet all legal requirements, nor all the requirements of EPA’s self-disclosure policy. EPA took the company’s disclosure into consideration in setting the penalty.

Source: U.S. EPA