[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 137 (Tuesday, July 19, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43058-43059]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-15342]
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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Notice of Lodging of Proposed Consent Decree Under The Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act
On July 13, 2022, the Department of Justice filed a complaint and
lodged a proposed consent decree with the United States District Court
for the Middle District of Louisiana in the lawsuit entitled United
States of America and Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality v.
PCS Nitrogen Fertilizer, L.P., Civil Action No. 3:22-cv-00468-SDD-RLB.
If approved by the court, the consent decree would resolve the claims
of the United States and the parallel claims of the Louisiana
Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) against PCS Nitrogen
Fertilizer, L.P., (PCS Nitrogen) for injunctive relief and civil
penalties for alleged violations of the Resource Conservation and
Recovery Act (RCRA) at PCS Nitrogen's former phosphoric acid fertilizer
facility located in Geismar, Louisiana (Facility). PCS Nitrogen made
phosphate and nitrogen fertilizer products (including sulfuric acid) at
the Facility beginning in the 1960s, through processes that generated
large quantities of acidic wastewater and a solid material called
phosphogypsum. The phosphogypsum was deposited and remains in large
piles that are over 200 feet high and cover an area greater than 100
acres. The Facility ceased fertilizer production operations in December
2018 but continues to conduct remediation and closure activities at its
phosphogypsum stack system and surface impoundments.
The consent decree would require PCS Nitrogen to (1) implement
compliance projects at the Facility; (2) make RCRA hazardous waste
determinations and properly manage all solid wastes generated,
including any solid wastes generated during cleaning of equipment and
phosphogypsum stack closure; (3) construct a wastewater treatment
plant, repair leaks in certain impoundments, properly segregate
stormwater and wastewater, and properly manage railcar and other
cleaning wastes; (4) comply with specified requirements for the ongoing
closure and long-term care of the Facility; and (5) provide over $84
million of financial assurance to cover the estimated cost of such
obligations. In addition, the consent decree would require PCS Nitrogen
to pay a civil penalty of $1,510,023. In return for PCS Nitrogen's
compliance with these requirements, the consent decree would resolve
past RCRA violations at the Facility that the United States' and LDEQ's
complaint alleges.
The publication of this notice opens a period for public comment on
the consent decree. Comments should be addressed to the Assistant
Attorney General, Environment and Natural Resources Division, and
should refer to United States of America and Louisiana Department of
Environmental Quality v. PCS Nitrogen Fertilizer, L.P., D.J. Ref. No.
90-7-1-08388/22. All comments must be submitted no later than forty-
five (45) days after the publication date
[[Page 43059]]
of this notice. Comments may be submitted either by email or by mail:
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To submit comments: Send them to:
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By email............................ [email protected].
By mail............................. Assistant Attorney General, U.S.
DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611,
Washington, D.C. 20044-7611.
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During the public comment period, the consent decree, including a
number of technical appendices, may be examined and downloaded at this
Justice Department website: http://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees. We will provide a paper copy of the consent decree upon
written request and payment of reproduction costs. Please mail your
request and payment to: Consent Decree Library U.S. DOJ--ENRD P.O. Box
7611 Washington, DC 20044-7611.
Please enclose a check or money order for $147.75 (25 cents per
page reproduction cost) payable to the United States Treasury. For a
paper copy without the Appendices and signature pages, the cost is
$16.00.
Thomas Carroll,
Assistant Section Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Environment
and Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 2022-15342 Filed 7-18-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-15-P