EPA: Tonawanda Coke to clean up act

TONAWANDA, N.Y. (WIVB) - RELEASE: You must follow environmental law. That’s the clear message that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation have sent to the Tonawanda Coke Corporation over the past two months in a series of enforcement actions that order the company to maintain and operate its coke manufacturing facility in a manner that no longer violates federal and state environmental laws.

In an effort to keep the Tonawanda community fully informed, EPA is sharing information about its ongoing multi-faceted investigation of this facility. The company violated the Clean Air Act by polluting the air with uncontrolled releases of ammonia and benzene, failing to conduct required annual maintenance inspections of emission controls and proper maintenance and operations, and failing to complete multiple required reports. Exposure to ammonia, benzene and other hazardous pollutants can significantly harm human health, and excessive exposure to benzene is a known cause of cancer.

EPA is also insisting that TCC take immediate steps to meet the requirements of the New York State air pollution plan. The company violated the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act in the improper handling of its coal tar sludge, a hazardous waste. TCC also violated the Clean Water Act by allowing pipes and storage tanks to significantly degrade and leak, and by failing to provide adequate containment of polluted stormwater runoff, resulting in illegal discharges of polluted wastewater through storm sewers that lead to the Niagara River. EPA is working in close coordination with NYSDEC on the investigations of Tonawanda Coke’s operations and efforts to bring the company into compliance with environmental laws.

“EPA has ratcheted up its ongoing investigation aimed at protecting people’s health and thus far, we have uncovered a long list of environmental violations at Tonawanda Coke,” said Judith Enck, EPA Regional Administrator. “We continue to examine every aspect of the facility’s operations to make sure we have the information to reduce the pollution from the facility. For the sake of those who live and work near this facility, EPA is doing everything in its power to put an end to Tonawanda Coke’s lax environmental practices.”

“Working cooperatively, state and federal agencies have focused on making tangible changes that will benefit the Tonawanda community,“ NYS DEC Commissioner Pete Grannis said. “But there is more to be done and our department will continue to evaluate all of its technical and legal options for reducing emissions from the plant in order to protect those who live and work in the area.”

In 2009, EPA conducted a comprehensive series of inspections of the Tonawanda Coke facility to determine its compliance with federal laws and regulations. As a result of this work, EPA found significant violationsof the Clean Air Act by TCC. The coke facility failed to enclose and seal openings of three uncontrolled tar-intercepting sumps, five excess ammonia liquor storage tanks and a light oil storage tank. TCC failed to properly calibrate and use key monitoring equipment that
could have detected gas leaks from a variety of sources. The company also failed to conduct monthly monitoring of all pumps and valves in benzene service for leaks, did not maintain schematics and diagrams of control equipment and any changes in design, and failed to submit regular reports describing defects, leaks, abnormalities and other key performance measures about its operations. TCC has not provided EPA with vital information about its operations, equipment in benzene service, and compliance methods. The company has failed to identify all of its benzene waste streams, making it difficult to track the amount of pollution generated at the facility. Furthermore, TCC has not provided refresher training to its operating personnel, kept proper records or submitted appropriate notifications about leaks, spills and other potential mishaps at its facility.

These investigations continue and as part of them, EPA is requiring the company to provide information about its processes and to conduct testing related to air pollution from the facility. This testing will give EPA and NYSDEC vital information needed to evaluate the facility’s compliance with environmental laws because it will be able to determine whether emissions from the facility are high enough to be controlled under the Clean Air Act as a ”major source” of hazardous air pollutants.

This would mean that the company would have to meet additional requirements above those that EPA has so far compelled it to meet.

EPA and NYSDEC have put TCC on notice that it violated environmental requirements found in New York State’s regulations governing coke ovens by not having the proper air pollution control technology on parts of its facility known as quench towers. Specifically, it was required to have equipment called baffles, which are wooden slats that