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Tonawanda Coke Settles with EPA; New Oil Spill Prevention Plan Now in Place, Company Fined

Release Date: 01/21/1999
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(#99012) New York, N.Y. -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has fined Tonawanda Coke, a coke and coal tar manufacturer based in Tonawanda, New York, $40,000 for violations of oil spill prevention sections of the federal Clean Water Act. EPA has also confirmed that these violations have been remedied.

In April 1998, EPA issued a complaint to Tonawanda Coke charging that the company did not properly put a plan in place to prevent oil spills at its 3875 River Road facility from reaching the nearby Niagara River. Tonawanda Coke's plan to deal with oil spills (a "Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC)" plan required by EPA) at that time stated that the company had several systems in place to divert uncontrolled oil leaks into retention ponds and containment areas -- effectively "catching" the oil before it reached the river. Upon inspection, however, EPA found that several of the protective measures outlined in the SPCC plan either were not implemented or did not work properly, in violation of the Clean Water Act. EPA also discovered that the Tonawanda Coke facility lacked other necessary spill prevention safety measures.

After EPA issued its formal complaint against Tonawanda Coke, the company amended its SPCC plan so that it now provides for increased protection against oil spills entering the environment. In a September 1998 inspection of the facility, EPA confirmed that this new plan is fully implemented.
Tonawanda Coke Corporation employs 130 people and has annual sales of over $22 million.

For more information contact:
Nina Habib Spencer, Press Office
EPA Region 2
290 Broadway
NY, NY 10007-1866
Voice: 212-637-3670 FAX: 212-637-5046 E-Mail: [email protected]