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CHROME ELECTROPLATERS TO SEE MORE INSPECTIONS

Release Date: 08/27/1997
Contact Information: Leo Kay, Press Office, (617)918-4154

BOSTON -- Now that the July deadline has passed in which all chrome platers needed to test their air emissions, the New England office of the Environmental Protection Agency will increase enforcement activities to insure that the region's electroplaters comply with safety standards required under the federal Clean Air Act.

During electroplating, chromium particles are released to the air as a mist that can cause health effects for workers and the public if not properly controlled. National standards for hazardous air pollutants require sources conducting decorative chrome plating, hard chrome plating, and anodizing to install, test, and properly maintain the maximum available control technology, or "chrome MACT standard". The standard requires that facilities covered by this standard notify the EPA of their efforts to reduce comply with chromium emission limits, test stack emissions, and keep records of proper operation and maintenance of control equipment.

In preparation for the deadline, the EPA and New England states conducted extensive compliance assistance over the past year, establishing two policies to reward self-disclosure of violations.

Under its audit policy, the EPA generally waives the gravity-based component of penalties for sources that conduct self-audits and disclose and correct any violations found. For businesses with 100 or less employees, the EPA's small business policy waives the entire civil penalty and gives businesses that meet certain criteria up to six additional months to come into compliance if they conduct an environmental audit, or receive on-site compliance assistance, and report that they are out of compliance before they are contacted by enforcement staff.

The EPA urges anyone covered by the standard to submit notifications to both the EPA and state air quality agencies, and come into compliance as quickly as possible. For more information on the chrome MACT standard and audit policy, contact Roy Crystal of the EPA at (617)918-1745. For more information on the small business policy, call Dwight Peavey at (617) 918-1829.