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Content about Hazardous waste

April 15, 2013
Former Va. Dry Cleaner to Reimburse EPA Over Cleanup Costs

PHILADELPHIA — Agency spent $616,351 on sampling, removal, disposal of contaminated soil

PHILADELPHIA — The former Jay-Cee Cleaners and former owner John L. Darby have agreed to reimburse the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for costs the agency incurred while responding to the release of hazardous substances once used at the site, the agency reports.

Darby also agreed to resolve his failure to comply with EPA’s information-gathering efforts by paying a penalty.

The Nelsonia, Va., dry cleaning business ran its operations on the property from 1957 through 2003, and used hazardous substances that included tetrachloroethylene, trichloroethylene and dichloroethylene, which contaminated the soil, the EPA says.

The agency oversaw sampling, removal and disposal of contaminated soil from the Jay-Cee Cleaners site between September 2007 and March 2010, at a reported cost of $616,351.

Under the proposed consent decree, Darby will pay the EPA 100% of the net sale proceeds from sale of the property, and 50% of net sale proceeds from the sale of an adjacent property behind the site.

The settlement will go toward EPA’s Superfund for future hazardous-waste cleanup efforts.

October 23, 2012
Balancing New Illinois Perc Law and Small Business

DOLTON, Ill. — New state law blurs dry cleaner focus on providing good service: Spomar

DOLTON, Ill. — Illinois is once again a leader in making it more difficult to own and operate a small business.

A new state law will require all new dry cleaning machines, beginning in 2013, to have “primary and secondary” control systems to reduce the concentration of perchloroethylene (perc), and to have sealed containment structures to contain leaks or spill by 2014.

This is really not an imposition, because a business owner knows in advance what is required for a new unit. As third-generation units die out, they cannot be replaced. Only fourth- and fifth-generation units are allowed on end date, but a review will be allowed.

A tougher safety measure on the use of perc requires dry cleaners to utilize “best management practices” while using the solvent. When a dry cleaning facility is operating dry cleaning machines, it will be required to have at least one person present who is trained and certified. The Illinois Drycleaner Environmental Response Trust Fund Council must approve the training. Proof of training must be available at each plant, and a refresher course must be taken every four years.

October 8, 2012
Settlement Announced in Stanton Cleaners Superfund Site Cleanup Lawsuit

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Defendants to pay approximately $2.7 million for EPA's cleanup costs

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — A civil environmental lawsuit stemming from the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) cleanup at the Stanton Cleaners Area Groundwater Contamination Site in Great Neck, N.Y., has been settled, authorities report.

The lawsuit was brought against the estate of Lillion Wiesner, John P. Maffei, and the property at 110 Cutter Mill Road in Great Neck, where hazardous substances were disposed of by former dry cleaning operations, according to Loretta E. Lynch, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Judith A. Enck, regional administrator, EPA Region 2.

The complaint alleged the Wiesner estate was liable for EPA's response costs under the “Superfund law” as a current and past owner at the time of disposal of hazardous substances. Maffei was liable, authorities assert, because he is a de facto current and past owner of the property.

September 10, 2012
Md. Dry Cleaner Gets Suspended Sentence for Illegal Waste Disposal

BALTIMORE — Drums containing dry cleaning solvent waste illegally dumped along roadside

BALTIMORE — Discount Dry Cleaners LLC, Laurel, Md., and its owner, Mehret Sium, 58, have been convicted of improperly disposing of hazardous waste in Maryland’s Anne Arundel County, reports state Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler.

Sium, on behalf of her business, pleaded guilty to illegal disposal of hazardous materials. She personally pleaded guilty to two counts of failing to comply with hazardous waste transportation requirements.

The convictions stem from a March 9 incident when the Maryland Department of the Environment Hazardous Response Team was contacted regarding a suspected hazardous drum dumping on Dicus Mill Road near Millersville.

Investigators from the Attorney General’s Environmental Crimes Unit found 18 drums varying in size from 5 to 35 gallons that contained hazardous waste from dry cleaning solvent. Numerous containers had no lids, and none was properly packaged, labeled or marked pursuant to Department of Transportation regulations. The drums were traced back to Discount Dry Cleaners.

August 4, 2011
R.R. Street Not Liable in Perc Contamination Lawsuit: Appeals Court

NAPERVILLE, Ill. — The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on July 27 upheld a lower court’s ruling that R.R. Street & Co. is not liable for contribution to perchlorethylene environmental cleanup costs under federal and California state laws, the company reports.

The Ninth Circuit held that equipment manufacturer Street’s was not liable as an “arranger of hazardous waste,” because it had not sold its product specifically for disposal of a hazardous substance.

In the 1980s, Team Enterprises, a large drycleaner in California’s central valley, disposed of contact wastewater containing perc by pouring it down the sewer drain. After finding perc in the soil, the California Regional Water Quality Control Board required cleanup.

Team consequently sued Street’s, along with other drycleaning equipment manufacturers and perc solvent producers, seeking financial contribution toward the cleanup. U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill exonerated Street’s of any contribution liability in August 2010, and Team appealed the decision.

November 7, 2008
The Environmental Side of the Sale

It is beyond comprehension why anyone would consider buying or selling a drycleaning plant before conducting an evaluation and inspection. And yet, it happens all the time.

I perform inspections on an average of two plants per month. In the same time, 30 to 40 operations nationwide probably change hands without an inspection from an environmental expert.

Today, I represent six drycleaners with contaminated properties in active lawsuits. Most went into the buying and selling process as if there were no problems to consider.

November 12, 2007
Hawaiian Punished for Compliance Violations

HONOLULU, Hawaii — The former owner of a downtown Honolulu drycleaning plant was sentenced to 15 years probation for the improper use and disposal of perchloroethylene last week.

Xuan-Mai Pavey, the owner of Fantastique Inc. from 2000 to 2005, pleaded no contest to charges of unlawful disposal and abandonment of hazardous wastes in July, as well as an air-pollution violation.

June 6, 2007
Florida Cleaner Charged with Hazwaste Violations

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) says it charged Dry Cleaning Warehouse operator Luis Reyes with the improper storage and disposal of hazardous wastes in late April, each third-degree felonies punishable by up to five years in prison and a $50,000 fine.

May 23, 2007
As A Petroleum User, What Should I Do with These Cartridges?

Q: Our process has used petroleum solvent since 1946. Twenty-five years ago, we started using a charcoal filtration system. What is the best and most appropriate way to dispose of the cartridges?

A: In our opinion, the only way to dispose of any type of solvent-related waste is to give it to a licensed hazardous-waste hauler.

Although petroleum wastes may be able to be disposed of at a facility that accepts waste oil, there may be an issue with cross-contamination from solvents or spotting agents present in the waste.