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EPA PROPOSES $35,700 FINE AGAINST RI FIRM FOR FAILING TO REPORT TOXIC CHEMICAL USE

Release Date: 09/21/1999
Contact Information: Amy Miller, EPA Press Office (617-918-1042)

BOSTON - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has proposed a $35,700 fine against a manufacturer of container caps in Woonsocket, RI, for failing to submit certain toxic chemical reporting forms in 1995 and 1996, as required by federal environmental law.

In its complaint, EPA-New England claimed that Tech Industries Inc. did not file forms regarding its use of certain glycol ethers, as required by the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act. Glycol ethers are used in the coatings for the container caps manufactured by Tech Industries. The action stems from an EPA inspection of the plant in May 1998.

The federal Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act (EPCRA) requires facilities that manufacture, process or otherwise use any of more than 600 specific chemicals over specific threshold amounts to submit reports annually to EPA and the state. This information is entered into the Toxic Release Inventory, or TRI, a large database available to the public, industry and state and local governments.

Tech Industries did submit reports for glycol ethers in 1993 and 1994 and has since submitted the missing reports.

"Citizens have a right to know about releases of toxic chemicals into the environment," said John P. DeVillars, EPA's New England Administrator. "By failing to submit these reports, Tech Industries compromised the integrity of the public's right to know what the environmental impact of a company is."