The owner of the Kerite Power Cable & Pump Cable factory in Seymour entered a guilty plea Tuesday to a felony violation of the Clean Water Act.
Marmon Utility LLC, which both owns and operates the factory, entered the plea in a proceeding before U.S. District Court Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s office, the company failed to properly operate and maintain the industrial wastewater treatment system and sludge-processing equipment at the 49 Day St. factory, which is near the Naugatuck River.
Under the terms of a plea agreement, Marmon will be on federal probation for three years and must pay $2.4 million to the government. This monetary figure includes an $800,000 federal penalty, plus $1.6 million toward the remediation of the Naugatuck River.
Dooley scheduled sentencing for April 7.
Kerite makes power cables and generates industrial wastewater containing heavy metals such as lead and zinc, according to court documents.
Under the terms of its 2015 permit with the state Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP), the company was required to properly operate and maintain the factory’s wastewater treatment system, to reduce heavy metal before wastewater could be discharged to the sewage treatment plant.
According to federal prosecutors, Marmon had workers without the proper training running its wastewater treatment system.
In 2016, a superintendent at the Seymour sewage treatment plant observed “unusual, rusty brown wastewater” flowing into the plant and notified DEEP. The wastewater was determined to have high levels of lead and zinc, and interfered with the decomposition of the sewage, documents show.
Investigators determined the rusty brown wastewater had come from the Kerite facility, where employees had not been properly trained to process and treat it, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.
Leonard C Boyle, acting U.S. Attorney for Connecticut, said any company operating a factory that ignores federal and state environmental laws “does so at its own peril.”
“Marmon failed to properly operate its industrial wastewater treatment system, thereby allowing unacceptably high levels of lead and zinc in its factory wastewater to flow to the Seymour sewage treatment plant – nearly knocking it offline,” Boyle said.
According to Boyle, Marmon had at one time had a robust environmental program, but gradually eliminated its environmental compliance program, reassigning key duties to maintenance workers with minimal training.
“Today’s prosecution under the (Clean Water Act) is the direct result of Marmon’s penny-wise, pound-foolish approach,” Boyle said.
DEEP Commissioner Katie Dykes asserted that the company’s conduct compromised the Seymour treatment plant’s ability to properly treat wastewater so it could protect the quality of the Naugatuck River, which the public uses for fishing and swimming.
“This action sends a clear message – everyone has a role in protecting public health and our environment and there are significant consequences for not obeying our environmental laws and regulations,” Dykes said.
According to Dykes, the money DEEP receives due to the proposed settlement will be used to strengthen programs that improve the quality of the Naugatuck River and its ecosystem.
Marmon Utility is being represented by Attorney David T. Grudberg of the firm Carmody Torrance Sandak & Hennessey.
Grudberg said via an email Wednesday, “Marmon Utility has acknowledged its responsibility for the compliance lapse that occurred for a period five years ago at its Seymour, Connecticut facility. The company is committed to sustained excellence in environmental performance.”
Contact Michelle Tuccitto Sullo at msullo@newhavenbiz.com.
