EPA Region 2 fines cleaners in NY, NJ
Seven drycleaners — six in New
Jersey and one in New York, were fined last month by EPA for
various violations pertaining to the Clean Air Act.
In announcing the fines, EPA’s
Region 2 office, which covers New York and New Jersey said it
is stepping up efforts to get drycleaners to meet the
requirements of the law.
“We are eager to work with
drycleaners that come to us for help to live up to their
environmental obligations,” said Jane Kenny, EPA Region 2
Administrator. “But we are adamant that businesses cannot
ignore the law.”
The Clean Air Act regulations, issued ten
years ago, are intended to control emissions from drycleaning
plants. Requirements include inspecting equipment regularly for
leaks, repairing any leaks, keeping records of the inspections,
operating all equipment according to manufacturers’
instructions and recording how much perc is purchased.
The Region 2 office acknowledged that, as
small businesses, drycleaners face more difficulty meeting the
rules than larger businesses. With that in mind, the agency
tried to help drycleaners comply through a program in which
officials from EPA Region 2 have visited hundreds of
drycleaners since the late 1990s and held several workshops in
association with trade groups. The agency also handed out
plain-language literature in both English and Korean and
offered to review each establishment’s operations and
give a temporary amnesty from penalties to give the operators
time to come into compliance.
More recently, the agency has taken a
sterner approach. Since January of 2000, the Region 2 office
has issued complaints against drycleaners seeking more than
half a million dollars in penalties.
Drycleaners that demonstrate continued
non-compliance with environmental regulations have been, and
will continue to be penalized, EPA said.
Penalties issued last month totaled
$9,900. EPA listed them as follows:
R.E.M. Cleaners, Richmond Hill, NY, was
cited for failure to monitor its refrigerator condenser sensor;
failure to calculate the difference between entering and
exiting vapors entering and exiting the condenser; failure to
keep on-site receipts for perc purchases; failure to keep logs
of perc purchases; failure to keep records of regular
temperature readings for its refrigerator condenser; and
failure to check weekly for leaks. R.E.M. agreed to pay a
penalty of $3,800.
St. Johns Cleaners, Jersey City, NJ, was
cited for failure to show an inspector its perc purchase
receipts; failure to keep a purchase log for perc; failure to
keep a log of annual use of perc; failure to record
temperatures of a refrigerator condenser; failure to conduct
bi-weekly inspections for leaks; and failure to keep a log of
the dates of leak inspections. St. Johns agreed to pay a
penalty of $1,900.
B&V Cleaners, Mountain Lakes, NJ, was
cited for failure to show EPA receipts for its perc purchases;
failure to keep a log of perc purchases; failure to keep a log
of leak inspections; failure to maintain a log of temperature
readings for a refrigerator condenser; and not keeping design
specifications and operating manuals on site. B&V agreed to
pay a penalty of $1,700.
Phillip’s Cleaners, North Bergen,
NJ, was cited for, among other things, failure to maintain a
log of its perc purchases; failure to record leak inspections;
and failure to keep a log of temperature monitoring for its
equipment. Phillip’s Cleaners agreed to pay a penalty of
$850.
Daisy Quality Cleaners, Jersey City, NJ,
was cited for failure to measure the temperature of a specified
vapor stream on a weekly basis; and failure to keep a log of
temperature readings for a refrigerator condenser. Daisy
Quality agreed to pay a penalty of $800.
Du-Rite Cleaners, Jersey City, NJ, was
cited for not being able to show receipts of perc purchases;
failure to keep a log of monthly perc purchases; failure to
keep a record of annual perc consumption; and not having
on-site operating manuals and design specifications for
equipment. Du-Rite agreed to pay a penalty of $650.
Emerald Cleaners, Jersey City, NJ, was
cited for failure to store all perc and perc-containing wastes
in proper solvent tanks or solvent containers with no
perceptible leaks. Emerald agreed to pay a penalty of $200.
EPA has compliance assistance information
on its web site:www.epa.gov/compliance/assistance/sectors/drycleaning.html.
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NELA to host fall conference at Mystic
Marriott
It will be a busy four days for attendees
of the Northeast Laundry Association’s 91st annual
meeting and fall conference, scheduled from September 18-21.
The event will be held at the Mystic
Marriott Hotel and Spa, located at 625 North Rd. in Groton,
Connecticut.
Registration will begin on Thursday, Sept.
18 at 3 p.m. A cocktail reception will begin at 6 p.m.,
followed by a dinner at the hotel a half hour later.
On Friday, the associate member exhibit
tables will open from 7 to 11:30 a.m. Registration will also be
open from 8 to 10 a.m.
The first of the convention’s two
educational seminars is scheduled from 9 to 11 a.m. on the same
morning. Jim Ruth of Mountville Mills will discuss
“Running a Successful Sales Route Promotion.”
Attendees will have the afternoon to
partake on a variety of group outings, including NELA’s
24th annual golf tournament, which will take place at the
Shennecosset Golf Course from 11:45 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
There are other relaxing options for
attendees, as well: a visit to the Mystic Aquarium and
Institute for Exploration, the Old Mystic Village or Foxwoods
Resort and Casino.
Friday evening will conclude with a dinner
cruise aboard the Sea Pony up the Thames River.
On Saturday morning, the associate member
exhibit tables will open from 8:30 to 11:45 a.m.
From 9:30 to 11:45 a.m. the same morning,
David A. Rich, president of Rich Ideas, will present “The
Art of Being Contagious.” The seminar will offer secrets
to creating natural persuasion, how rapport is a technology,
how to “click” with new people that you meet, and
how to keep your customers from running to your competition by
knowing what they are really looking for.
Once again, the afternoon will be open for
fun excursions, including a chartered fishing expedition and a
tennis tournament that runs from 1 to 4 p.m.
Several social events will keep everyone
busy on Saturday night. A cocktail reception will run from 7 to
8 p.m., before NELA presents its annual banquet and
presentation of awards from 8 to 9:30 p.m. The remainder of the
evening will feature music and dancing at the Mystic Marriott.
Registration packages for the full
conference run $190 per member and $240 per non-member. For
those who only attend Thursday’s functions will pay $50
each if they are members or $110 each otherwise.
Members planning on only attending
Friday’s schedule of events will pay $110 each.
Non-members pay $160 each. For Saturday’s events, members
pay $110 each and non-members pay $160.
There are additional costs for those who
register for optional group activities. Golf registration,
including green fees, cart and lunch, runs $75 per person. The
tennis tournament costs $35 per person and includes lunch and
court fees.
Admission to the Mystic Aquarium is $12
for adults and $8 for children. The chartered fishing boat
excursion costs $115 per person and includes all equipment
rental and a boxed lunch.
Hotel reservations may be secured at the
Mystic Marriott Hotel & Spa by calling (800) 446-2600 or
(800) 228-9290.
A special room rate of $199 per night has
been reserved for those who call and mention their association
with the NELA conference.
For more information, contact NELA by
calling (781) 397-8870.
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