Lockhart Chemical in Flint Ordered to Stop Using Defective Underground Tunnels for Wastewater & Stormwater
Lockhart Chemical Company has been ordered to stop using defective wastewater and stormwater tunnels on its property.
Michigan Radio reports that investigators said that the chemical company was the source of an oil spill that spread more than 20 miles downstream along the Flint River earlier in the year.
According to state officials, trace amounts of the chemical are still being found in a city storm drain, reported Michigan Radio. Lockhart was previously cited for multiple violations at its Flint facility, which includes before the spill in the Flint River was discovered in mid-June.
EGLE cited Lockhart for multiple violations of its operating permit. MLive reported that a district supervisor told the company in an Aug. 16 letter that it was continuing “to operate in a manner that results in discharges to the ground and surface waters of the state.”
Flint issued a cease and desist order on any sewage discharges by the company after the June 15 discovery of the river spill, which was later modified and allowed Lockhart to resume discharges under the terms of its permit, "forbidding any liquid held in tanks from being discharged to the city’s sanitary or storm water sewers," reported MLive.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and her office and the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, as well as the Genesee County Sheriff’s Department, delivered the order to Lockhart officials Sept. 19.
“Businesses that neglect their responsibilities put people at risk,” said Nessel, reported Michigan Radio. “We simply cannot stand for that type of disregard.”
Nessel, Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson and other state and local officials announced the order is the first of its kind in Michigan in more than 30 years, reported MLive.
"The order requires Lockhart to pump its waste product into above-ground containers so it can be safely transported off site for disposal," stated MLive.
Nessel adds that the chemical company has refused to correct its issues at the facility, which have been brought to their attention multiple times.
Lockhart has not commented on the matter.
MLive reported that EGLE gave the company until Sept. 16 to: complete plans for the bulkheading and permanent bypass; or relining the storm sewer beneath its property; and relining or repairing compromised pipes from its oil and water separator to the sanitary sewer.
On Sept. 19, the company was given 10 days to submit a plan for EGLE’s review for repairing or replacing an open trench it has used to transport storm and waste waters. Lockhart must either re-line or fix breaches in the open trench before it can continue using it.
