Manager arrested from Tonawanda Coke

TONAWANDA, N.Y. (RELEASE) - A criminal complaint and arrest warrant have been issued charging Mark L. Kamholz, 62, of West Seneca, NY, with violating the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, and the Clean Air Act, announced U.S. Attorney Kathleen M. Mehltretter of the Western District of New York. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 5 years imprisonment, a fine of $50,000 per day of violation, or both.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron J. Mango stated the criminal complaint charges that the defendant, who is employed as the Manager for Environmental Control for the Tonawanda Coke Corporation, failed to notify immediately the appropriate agency of the United States Government as soon as he had knowledge of a release of coal tar sludge, a hazardous substance at the Tonawanda Coke Corporation (TCC). The complaint alleges that the coal tar sludge was released as a result of a failed decommissioning attempt of two storage tanks, and that the coal tar sludge was inadvertently ignited. The complaint also alleges that the storage of this coal tar sludge on the ground is a violation of RCRA. The complaint also charges that from April 14, 2009, to December 17, 2009, the defendant violated a requirement of a Clean Air Act operating permit promulgated and approved under United States law. The defendant was arraigned on the charges today before United States Magistrate Judge H. Kenneth Schroeder, Jr., and released on a $10,000 signature bond. The case was adjourned until April 30, 2010.

The filing of the criminal complaint was the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - Criminal Investigation Division, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge William Lometti, and Investigators of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Police, BECI, under the direction of Captain David Bennett.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.