Hazardous Waste/Air Enforcement: Mississippi Commission on Environmental Quality and Columbus, Mississippi Furniture Manufacturing Facility Enter into Agreed Order

The Mississippi Commission on Environmental Quality (“MCEQ”) and Johnston-Tombigbee Furniture Manufacturing Company (“JT”) entered into a June 25th Agreed Order (“AO”) addressing alleged violations of a Clean Air Act Title V Air Permit and Mississippi hazardous waste regulations. See Order No. 6868 18.

The AO provides that JT operates a furniture manufacturing facility (“Facility”) in Columbus, Mississippi.

• Onsite visible emissions observations observer failed the recertification test in April 2016 and there were no other onsite personnel certified to perform visible emissions observations. However, Facility personnel are stated to have subsequently passed the certification test.
• Failure to route all emissions from conventional air spray guns to a functioning control device. Compliant air spray guns were stated to have been subsequently installed.

Alleged violations of certain hazardous waste regulations are alleged to include:

• Failure to label a 5-gallon bucket used to collect spent acetone (a hazardous waste label on the container was stated to have been subsequently placed)
• Failure to label a 55-gallon drum used as a satellite accumulation container for the acetone waste (a hazardous waste label was stated to have been subsequently placed)
• Failure to label a 55-gallon drum equipped with fluorescent tube crusher (a hazardous waste label was stated to have been subsequently placed)
• Failure to keep 55-gallon drum sealed (a bolted locking ring was stated to have been subsequently placed on the drum)
• Failure to keep two 55-gallon drums in the paint mixing room (a bolted locking ring was stated to have been subsequently placed on the drum)
• Failure to keep fluorescent tube crusher sealed when not in use (the bulb crusher was stated to have been subsequently immediately sealed)
• Failure to indicate the date of accumulation on either container in the paint mixing room (only one 55-gallon drum for satellite accumulation is stated to now be in the paint mixing room)
• Failure to maintain aisle space in the 90-day accumulation area ( the drums are stated to have been rearranged in the 90-day accumulation area into single rows that are accessible)

JT is stated to not admit any of the previously referenced allegations.

The AO assesses a civil penalty of $14,290.

A copy of the AO can be found here.