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Idaho Developers Fined for Storm Water Violations

Release Date: 07/16/2008
Contact Information: Contacts: Kristine Karlson, Compliance & Enforcement (206) 553-0290 / karlson.kristine@epa.gov Suzanne Skadowski, Public Affairs (206) 553-6689 / skadowski.suzanne@epa.gov

(Seattle, Wash. July 16, 2008) Operators at three construction sites in Nampa, Idaho just paid a total of $21,800 to settle Clean Water Act (CWA) cases filed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The cases arose from inspections EPA Region 10 conducted at the start of the construction season this spring. EPA inspectors checked construction sites for compliance with the nationwide Construction General Permit, which is part of the CWA National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES). Inspectors observed violations at all of the sites visited. Those violations included failure to apply for coverage under the storm water permit, failure to conduct required self-inspections, and failure to install and maintain erosion and sediment controls.

This is the fifth year in a multi-year enforcement initiative to improve compliance with the storm water permit. The permit requires construction site operators to proactively design, install, and maintain storm water controls in order to prevent runoff from harming water quality. Common construction site pollutants include sediment, oil and grease, and high pH from concrete washout.

According to Kim Ogle, Manager of EPA’s NPDES Compliance Unit, conducting storm water inspections helps ensure a level playing field when it comes to protecting Idaho’s waters.

“While some Idaho builders and developers are doing a good job, there are others who are ignoring the storm water permit requirements,” said Ogle. “Builders and developers that fail to follow these permit conditions will face fines.”

The violations were settled using the EPA’s Construction Storm Water Expedited Settlement Offer (ESO) Policy, a streamlined enforcement process with lower fines for operators who are first-time violators and where no significant environmental harm was yet observed.

The inspections resulted in ESOs at the following three sites, with penalties ranging from $2,450 to $14,950:

Operators	Construction Site	Penalty
Dan Kropf SC Construction	Dan Kropf construction site	$4,400
Ronald W. Van Auker, Inc.	65 K #2 Building	$2,450
Freund/Spencer Knife River	Empire Business Park	$14,950

For more about EPA’s storm water Construction General Permit, visit:
https://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/home.cfm?program_id=6

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