Top Air Pollution Penalties

The South Coast Air Quality Management District has responsibility to control air pollution. It can seek court-imposed fines against polluters of from $25 to $25,000 a day based on such factors as the extent that emissions exceed legal limits, potential danger to the public, whether the violation was intentional, accidental or because of negligence and the company’s history of violations. These are the 10 top penalties in June: COMPANY: Chevron USA El Segundo TYPE OF BUSINESS: Refinery PENALTY: $41,500 VIOLATION: Excessive hydrocarbons and various violations from leaking valves and flanges. COMPANY: Ultramar Inc. Wilmington TYPE OF BUSINESS: Refinery PENALTY: $22,750 VIOLATION: Public nuisance violation for excessive odors from valve leaks, failure to inspect equipment, operating a pump without a permit. COMPANY: Union Pacific Railroad Co. Los Angeles TYPE OF BUSINESS: Railroad PENALTY: $15,000 VIOLATION: Failure to submit an AQMD-approved ride-sharing plan within 90 days of notification. COMPANY: Weslock Corp. Los Angeles TYPE OF BUSINESS: Lock maker PENALTY: $10,000 VIOLATION: Record-keeping violations, contrary to permit conditions, and installing equipment without a permit. The company agreed to spend an additional $10,000 to train its employees to comply with air quality regulations, to audit its compliance program and to assess the feasibility of eliminating its degreasing operation. COMPANY: Jon Donaire Santa Fe Springs TYPE OF BUSINESS: Food manufacturer PENALTY: $7,050 VIOLATION: Failure to implement employee ride-sharing incentives in its AQMD-approved ride-sharing plan in a timely manner. COMPANY: Unocal Lomita Tank Farm Torrance TYPE OF BUSINESS: Gasoline storage facility PENALTY: $6,000 VIOLATION: Excessive hydrocarbons because of gaps in the secondary seals of four floating roof gasoline tanks. Company also agreed to notify AQMD before each semiannual tank inspection for the next two years and to have an AQMD inspector present. COMPANY: L.A. Gear Inc. Ontario TYPE OF BUSINESS: Shoe maker PENALTY: $5,000 VIOLATION: Failure to submit an approvable AQMD ride-sharing plan in a timely manner. COMPANY: United Gas San Bernardino, Bellflower sites TYPE OF BUSINESS: Gas stations PENALTY: $4,000 VIOLATION: Failure to obtain a permit to operate at the San Bernardino site, failure to maintain a vapor recovery system at the Bellflower site. COMPANY: A-1 Auto Body Van Nuys TYPE OF BUSINESS: Auto paint and body shop PENALTY: $3,708 VIOLATION: Operating a spray-painting booth for a year without a permit. The penalty settles a default judgment obtained against the company in May, 1990. COMPANY: Twin Palms Limited Partnership North Hollywood TYPE OF BUSINESS: Apartment building owners PENALTY: $3,500 VIOLATION: Violating asbestos-removal rules during scraping of asbestos-containing material from ceilings in various units of the Twin Palms Apartments.