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1. PUBLIC FORUM NEXT WEEK WILL HIGHLIGHT ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE, 2. NEARLY $4 MILLION IN GRANTS AWARDED FOR WILDLIFE RESEARCH, 3. CARNIVAL CORP. TO PAY $18 MILLION FOR OIL POLLUTION AT SEA, 4. FORMER NEW JERSEY COMPANY OFFICIAL INDICTED IN TESTING SCHEME, 5. CONNECTICUT MAN, COMPANY CHARGED ON THREE ASBESTOS COUNTS, 6. CORPORATION, OWNER SENTENCED IN FLORIDA CAR IMPORT CASE, 7. ENVIRONMENTAL FUGITIVE FROM SEATTLE TAKEN INTO CUSTODY, 8. OREGON RADIATOR REPAIR COMPANY, FORMER MANAGER SENTENCED

Release Date: 04/25/2002
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Press Advisory

Following are some Agency developments which may interest you. If you need more information on any of these subjects, call the appropriate contact.

EPA will host a two-day Science Forum in Washington, D.C. on May 1-2. EPA Administrator Christine Whitman will deliver a key note address on Wed., May 1. Several senior agency program officials will provide their perspective on the importance of science in decision-making. The event, which is open to the public, will feature interactive exhibits on cutting-edge scientific issues, public discussions of recent research and many activities for school children. Some topics that will be featured at the “EPA Science Forum 2002: Meeting the Challenges,” will be Safe Water, Air Quality, Environmental Indicators and Susceptible Populations. Posters, exhibits and EPA scientists will be on hand to showcase EPA’s leadership in key areas of environmental science. The Forum will be held both days between 8:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. on the Concourse Level of the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W., Washington, D.C. More information and on-line registration are available at: www.epa.gov/ord/scienceforum .

EPA recently awarded research grants totaling more than $3.8 million to seven universities, one nonprofit research institution and one state agency to evaluate the impacts of environmentally-related stressors on wildlife populations. The impact of environmental pollutants, loss or alteration of habitat and introduction of non-native species can have on birds, mammals, amphibians and reptiles will be studied. The grants have been awarded to: University of California (Santa Barbara); University of Colorado; Florida Atlantic University; University of Hawaii at Manoa; Kansas State University; University of Kentucky; University of Maryland; Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources; and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. The goal of this research is to contribute empirical information on the relative impacts of various environmental factors on wildlife populations, so that strategies can be developed to mitigate the most influential pollutant sources and so that benefits of mitigation can be better defined by policy makers. The grants were awarded through EPA’s Science to Achieve Results program. This grant program is designed to engage the nation’s best university scientists and engineers in environmental research. Through the program, EPA funds research grants in numerous environmental science and engineering disciplines through a competitive solicitation process and independent peer review. For more information, see: http://www.es.epa.gov/ncer/ .

Carnival Corp. of Miami, Fla., which operates 40 cruise ships including those of the Carnival Cruise Lines, pleaded guilty on April 19 to falsification of oil record books on several of its ships. The company will pay $18 million in fines, $9 million of which will be used for a variety of environmental community service projects. Carnival was also ordered to implement and enforce a new corporation-wide environmental compliance program. The falsifications occurred on numerous occasions between 1996 and 2001, during which period employees ran fresh water past the sensors in the oil water separators of Carnival ships, generating false oil concentration readings. As a result, the sensors failed to activate a diversion valve which would have otherwise kept the contaminated water on board. This allowed the bilge water with oil levels exceeding the allowable limit of 15 ppm to be flushed into sea. Crew members then took the false sensor readings and recorded them in the ships’ oil record books. The release of bilge water with greater than allowed concentrations of oil has the potential to do significant harm to ocean life. The case was investigated by EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division, the U.S. Department of Transportation Inspector General’s Office, the FBI and the U.S. Customs Service. It is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s office in Miami.

Thomas M. Hayes of Rockaway Township, N.J., former Vice-President of Western Operations at Saybolt Inc., was indicted on April 17 for allegedly conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act by falsifying test results on re-formulated gasoline, making false statements to EPA and committing mail fraud. He is also charged with witness tampering. The gasoline falsifications were done to avoid the costs of remixing fuel that did not meet minimum federal standards for oxygen content. At certain times of the year gasoline sold in specific markets must be reformulated to contain sufficient oxygen to reduce the levels of pollutants emitted by automobiles. Reducing pollutant emissions is important because high emissions lead to high atmospheric ozone levels which increase the incidence of breathing disorders such as emphysema and asthma. The charges could bring a maximum sentence of up to five years in prison and/or a fine of up to $250,000 on the conspiracy count and up to 10 years in prison and/or a fine of up to $250,000 on the witness tampering count. The case was investigated by EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division with the assistance of EPA’s National Enforcement Investigations Center. It is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s office in Newark.

Fred N. Durante, Jr. General Contractor Inc., of Stamford, Conn., and its general manager, Peter Welling of Westport, Conn., were each indicted on April 17 on three counts of violating the Clean Air Act by the illegal removal of asbestos-containing material. The defendants were hired to demolish the old clubhouse at the Woodway Country Club in Darien, Conn. The building contained 15,000 square feet of friable asbestos ceiling plaster. However, the defendants allegedly paid for the proper removal of only 8,000 feet of the asbestos-containing plaster and then declared that there was no more asbestos in the building. The building was then allegedly demolished with heavy equipment without following required federal asbestos workplace standards. The failure to follow asbestos workplace standards can cause workers to inhale asbestos fibers which can cause lung cancer, a lung disease known as “asbestosis” and mesothelioma, which is a cancer of the chest and abdominal cavities. If convicted on all counts, Welling faces a maximum sentence of up to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $750,000. The company faces a maximum fine of up to $1.5 million, if convicted on all counts. The case was investigated by EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division with assistance from the Connecticut Department of Public Health. It is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s office in New Haven.

Miami-based Container Services International Inc., (CSI) and its owner, South Florida resident Nicole G. Schmitt, were sentenced on April 16 for their participation in a scheme to illegally import approximately 45 foreign vehicles that did not meet American Clean Air Act (CAA) and Department of Transportation standards. Schmitt will spend four months in prison, followed by four months in home detention and two years of supervised release. In addition, she will pay a total of $625,000 in restitution to 45 owners of illegally imported vehicles. CSI was sentenced to two years probation and was ordered to pay a $10,000 fine. CSI will also share responsibility for the $625,000 in restitution. Federal law allows non-standard vehicles to be brought into the United States for up to one year, provided they are used only for personal use by visiting foreign nationals. The vehicles must then be shipped out of the country when the one-year grace period has expired. The defendants claimed that the imported vehicles were for temporary personal use, but then conspired with others and obtained American titles for the vehicles, which were subsequently sold to buyers in the United States. Selling vehicles that do not meet CAA standards make it difficult for localities to control air pollution, which causes a variety of respiratory diseases. The case was investigated by EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division, the U.S. Customs Service, the U.S. Department of Transportation Inspector General’s Office and the Miami-Dade Police Department Environmental Investigation Unit. It was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s office in Miami.

Sherman Smith, owner of Seawall Construction, a Seattle area marine construction company, was surrendered to the U.S. Marshall’s Service in Tucson, Ariz., on April 1 by the Mexican Government. Smith had forfeited $20,000 bail when he failed to appear for trial in federal court in Washington State in May 1996 and had been living in Mexico. Smith was previously charged on Sept. 27, 1995, in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington in Seattle with violating the Clean Water Act. The charges arose from an oil spill that occurred when a tug sank in Puget Sound. Witnesses alleged that Smith had not properly maintained the tug and knew it was taking on water. Previously, in 1989, Smith had been convicted of pumping oily bilge water into Puget Sound. The case was investigated by EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division and the Washington State Environmental Crimes Task Force. It is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s office in Seattle.

Mac’s Radiator and Repair Inc., of Portland, Ore., a company which owns a chain of 16 radiator repair shops in Washington, Oregon and Idaho pleaded guilty and was sentenced to pay a $90,000 fine on April 15 for violating the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA). Costs of cleanup and restitution paid to the City of Garden City, Idaho, will be deducted from the fine. Kevin H. Jonely, former manager of the Mac’s Radiator facility in Garden City, Idaho, was also sentenced on the same date for violating the Clean Water Act (CWA). He will serve four months in prison and pay a $3,000 fine. In its guilty plea, Mac’s Radiator admitted to violating CERCLA by failing to report the release of a hazardous substance. Jonely previously pleaded guilty to violating the CWA and admitted that he failed to hire a licensed hazardous waste disposal firm to remove and dispose of lead-containing hazardous waste in the Mac’s Garden City facility’s oil/water separator. Instead, Jonely illegally directed employees to help him use a steam cleaner and a hose to break up the waste and flush it down the facility’s sewer clean-out. He had been previously notified by a Garden City official that he did not have a CWA discharge permit to discharge the waste into the city sewer system, which was not designed to treat hazardous waste. The waste contained lead. Lead is a toxic metal which can be harmful to fish and wildlife and can cause neurological and learning disorders in people. The case was investigated by EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division, the FBI, the Idaho State Police, the City of Boise and the City of Garden City. It was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s office in Boise.


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