Koch Nitrogen Company to Pay $380,000 Civil Penalty for Clean Air Act Violations at Facilities in Iowa and Kansas
Koch Nitrogen Company LLC has agreed to pay a $380,000 civil penalty to settle alleged violations of the Clean Air Act at facilities in Iowa and Kansas.
Inspections of three of Koch's facilities in 2007 and 2009 revealed violations of the risk management program required by the Clean Air Act. The inspected facilities are in Fort Dodge and Marshalltown, Iowa, and Dodge City, Kan. The Fort Dodge and Dodge City facilities manufacture ammonia and urea-ammonium nitrate solution. The Marshalltown facility is a pipeline terminal at which anhydrous ammonia is removed from an interstate pipeline or from highway tank trucks and stored on the property.
As a part of the risk management program, facilities must develop a management system, assess hazards, develop a prevention program, address emergency response, and submit a risk management plan.
Inspectors found that the facilities had issues with the management system, had not fully implemented the prevention program requirements, had not adequately coordinated with local first responders, and failed to include all required information in the risk management plan.
"A proper risk management program is an important component of preventing accidental releases into the air of harmful substances and to reduce the severity of releases that do occur," said EPA Region 7 Administrator Karl Brooks. "This penalty sends a strong message to Koch and other companies that EPA expects adherence to all aspects of the Clean Air Act."
The consent decree is subject to a 30-day public comment period and approval by the federal court. Once it is published in the Federal Register, a copy of the consent decree will be available on the Justice Department website at www.usdoj.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html.
As a result of this settlement, Koch Nitrogen has certified that it is in full compliance with Clean Air Act.