Max Environmental Technologies, Inc. (MAX) has agreed to several actions to ensure compliance with federal and state hazardous safeguards at the company’s waster facility in Yukon, Pennsylvania.
The consent order addresses RCRA and state hazardous waste requirements. MAX has agreed to immediate measures to eliminate the potential release of solid and hazardous waste into the environment to make sure that future operations don’t cause or contribute to releases at the facility.
The RCRA consent order includes prohibition of disposal of untreated hazardous waste in the facility’s landfill unless it has been reviewed. It also includes monitoring and sampling of residential wells near the facility, and monthly progress reports and meetings with EPA project managers. The consent order requires the retention of an EPA approved third part engineer to perform structural evaluation and recommendations to repair or modify the containment and processing building and containment pads.
Some of the hazardous waste at the MAX facility are wastewater treatment sludge, corrosives, arsenic, barium, cadmium, chromium, lead, selenium, silver, electric arc furnace dust and waste acid/pickle liquor.
EPA officials inspected the facility March 20-24, 2023, and found several violations including unlawful disposal of hazardous waste in the solid waste landfill at the facility, failure to maintain a containment building, and failure to keep the hazardous waste containers closed to prevent hazardous waste release.