Louisiana-Pacific Pays Biggest Clean Air Act Penalty Ever

In a settlement reached with the EPA in May, Louisiana-Pacific has agreed to pay $11.1 million for failure to comply with permitting procedures at 14 oriented strand board (OSB) and medium-density fiberboard (MDF) plants. L-P will also install state-of-the-art pollution control equipment costing $70 million at eleven of those plants as part of the agreement, and enhance monitoring at all 28 of its panel manufacturing facilities. The penalty is the second largest in the history of U.S. federal environmental law, surpassed only by a $15 million penalty paid by Texas Eastern Natural Gas Pipeline Co. in 1987 for violation of federal toxic and hazardous waste laws.

A joint statement from U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno and EPA Administrator Carol Browner states that “Louisiana-Pacific either failed to obtain air permits or obtained them by using misleading information.” Pollu­tants found to be released in excessive amounts included particulates, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), carbon monoxide, nitrous oxides, and sulphur dioxide (see EBN