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EPA FINES SALEM COMPANY $26,000

Release Date: 02/20/1997
Contact Information: Leo Kay, Press Office, (617)918-4154

BOSTON -- A manufacturing company in Salem, Mass. recently settled a complaint filed against it by the New England office of the Environmental Protection Agency by agreeing to pay a $26,300 penalty for violating federal law that requires materials containing polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) to be properly labelled and manifested.

Ruggles-Klingemann Manufacturing Company, which manufactures and repairs all types of valves, was cited under the federal Toxic Substances Control Act for shipping off site waste oil contaminated with PCBs, a known human carcinogen, without properly labelling or manifesting the waste.

"The proper labelling and manifesting of hazardous materials constitutes an easy, yet effective, means of protecting human health and the environment," said John P. DeVillars, administrator of the EPA's New England office. "By failing to properly label and manifest its waste, Ruggles-Klingemann not only tainted an additional 40 additional drums with PCBs, but also created the risk that the waste would be improperly handled and disposed of at a facility not licensed to accept PCBs."

According to complaint filed Dec. 16 by the EPA, Ruggles-Klingemann initially contacted an environmental services company to remove seven barrels of waste oil. After the company provided Ruggles-Klingemann with a bid stating that some of the waste oil contained PCBs, Ruggles-Klingemann sought a bid from a second company. When the second company -- who did not test for PCBs -- provided a lower bid, Ruggles-Klingemann contracted with it to remove the waste, and signed a document certifying that the waste did not contain PCBs.

The second company removed the oil and transported it to a facility where Ruggles-Klingemann's waste oil was then mixed with waste from three other generators, creating a total of 43 drums of PCB waste. The removal companies ultimately arranged for the proper disposal of the PCB waste.

Subsequently, Ruggles-Klingemann contracted with a third contractor to remove additional waste oil from its Salem facility. Again, Ruggles-Klingemann failed to mark the waste with PCB markers, and also signed paperwork stating that the oil was free of PCBs. When the third contractor tested the waste and discovered that the oil contained PCBs, it shipped the drums back to Ruggles-Klingemann, which finally had the waste disposed of properly.