Anybody here had first hand dealings with the EPA on a business scale?
Those with your hands up, speak up now if your not scared ****less of what is going on in Copenhagen.
about 15 years ago the EPA came to see us cause a fired employee reported we were pouring printing inks down the drain. My father carried the guy in the back, grabbed a brand new 5 lbs can of ink and opened it. He then held out the guys hand and turned the ink can upside down over the guys hand and nothing came out. This stuff is WAY thicker than maple syrup......no way in hell we could get it down the drain if we tried!!!
The guy agreed this was a frivolous report but since he was here he'd check us out. Our company was the first to install silver recovery units in our drain systems even though it was legal to dump the amount we discharged, we had seperate dumpster for pallets and paper to go to recycling centers even though most competitors sent all that crap to the landfills......we weren't worried, we're outdoorsmen and care about the environment......the guy ended up spending weeks in our plant!!!!!
Nearly 12 months later we were hit with a $535,000 "fine" for a huge list of violations!
We ended up hiring a defense lawyer that specializes in EPA matters. 2 years later she was able to show they were fining us for things that weren't illegal, that weren't legal anymore but were when we were checked (and we had since changed to comply with new laws), or had mis-represented the data when in fact we were in compliance. Finally they were stuck on this last item that was BS and they wanted $5,000 for it. She advised we could fight it too, but just pay the $5K and let them walk away thinking they at least got something......2 years and $40,000 to the lawyer later we were done.
I already do the right thing, and I'm not a fan of the EPA.
Current issues:
They worry about the "fumes" in my building. It's perfectly legal for me to open all the doors and windows in my plant for ventilation.....If I put a fan in the window I have to get a permit for it or will (and have been) fined for it.
I have to report how many lbs of printing ink EVAPORATE out of my building every year......how do you calculate that!!! If I go over a pre-determined amount I have bought PERMITS for I get fined cause I didn't buy a large enough permit!
They want to check what fluids get dumped down my drains yet I have a permit for everything but water that is bought and stored in my building. They started testing the discharge water at the next manhole down the street to see what I may have dumped....quarterly!! I contested that they could be capturing crap from someone else further up the street. They're solution, Install a manhole access on my property before our discharge hits the main line so they can test us there instead...$20,000 for that...and had to get permits from 2 offices to tap into the discharge line!!!
5 years+ testing and they haven't found a thing (which BTW they send me the bill for the tests to be completed)
last month I get a bill for a new "fee" I've never heard of before. "rain water run-off fee" of nearly $4,000. Is this a joke, what is it. Turns out the local/state "EPA" office (actually the city GOV) needs cash so they've created a new bill for the amount of roof space you have that keeps rain water from seeping into the ground! I was told to expect this every year from now on.
, and it's a disgrace. What a scam! 
