Two manufacturing companies in EPA Region 4 have agreed to pay civil penalties and take corrective measures to settle Clean Air Act (CAA) violations resulting from explosions at two plants in Louisville, Kentucky, and Pascagoula, Mississippi.

The complaints against both companies allege that they failed to adhere to the CAA's general duty clause, which obligates companies handling extremely hazardous substances to take steps to identify and reduce the risks associated with the use of these chemicals.

The complaint alleges that the incident in Louisville at a caramel coloring manufacturing plant resulted in the death of one employee and the release of an ammonia cloud in a nearby residential neighborhood. The company agreed to pay $600,000 in civil penalties and hire an outside engineering consultant to complete a full hazard operability study, implement the study's recommendations, and train its managers in process-hazard assessment techniques.

The complaint filed against the Pascagoula company, which makes extremely hazardous mononitrotoluene (MNT), asserts that the failure to meet the general duty requirement led to the explosion that resulted in the release of over 1,200 pounds of MNT into the air. The company agreed to pay $731,000 in civil penalties, to complete an ongoing comprehensive hazard analysis of its MNT process, and to implement all recommendations resulting from the analysis.

INFO: Contact DOJ at 202-514-2007.