News Releases from Region 07

EPA Inspections Reveal Hazardous Waste Violations at GKN Armstrong Wheels in Estherville and Armstrong, Iowa

Environmental News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Lenexa, Kan., May 13, 2015) - EPA Region 7 compliance evaluation inspections at two GKN Armstrong Wheels, Inc., facilities in Iowa revealed violations of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) related to the storage and handling of hazardous waste at each facility. In a settlement filed recently in Lenexa, Kan., the company agreed to pay a $150,031 civil penalty to the United States.

Independent inspections at the company's Estherville and Armstrong locations revealed that the company operated each facility as a treatment, storage or disposal facility without a RCRA permit or RCRA interim status, in that they failed to comply with waste generator requirements. GKN Armstrong Wheels also failed to comply with manifesting regulations, universal waste regulations, and used oil regulations.

The two GKN Armstrong Wheels facilities manufacture steel wheels for the off-road industry, primarily for agricultural and construction industries. Both facilities are classified as large quantity generators (generating 1,000 kilograms of hazardous waste per month), and as small quantity handlers of universal waste (accumulating less than 5,000 kilograms of universal waste at any time). In addition, the facilities are used oil generators. All of these operations subject GKN Armstrong Wheels to regulation under RCRA.

Large quantity generators of hazardous waste may operate without a RCRA permit or interim status, provided they comply with certain regulatory requirements. The generator requirements the company failed to comply with include conducting weekly hazardous waste inspections, properly labeling and closing hazardous waste containers, listing the emergency coordinator's contact information in a contingency plan, and training personnel in hazardous waste management procedures, among others.

By agreeing to the settlement with EPA, GKN Armstrong Wheels has certified that it is now in compliance with all requirements of the RCRA and its implementing regulations.