KANSAS CITY, Kan. —
Russell Stover Candies has agreed to pay $585,000 to settle alleged violations of the federal Clean Water Act at its facility in the east-central Kansas town of Iola, the U.S. Department of Justice and the Environmental Protection Agency announced Thursday.
The EPA conducted an audit in June 2008 and found that the Kansas City, Mo.-based candy maker was discharging acidic wastewater to a government-owned sewage treatment plant.
But Russell Stover didn’t fix the problem until the EPA issued a compliance order in July 2009, the agency said in a news release. One step the company has taken is pretreating its wastewater.
EPA Regional Administrator Karl Brooks said Russell Stover had been discharging acidic wastewater for years, causing deterioration of sewer lines and manholes in Iola.
“This settlement sends a clear message,” Brooks said in a written statement. “Companies that use publicly owned treatment works to treat their wastewater must follow the law.”
The consent decree requires Russell Stover to perform compliance monitoring for a period of two years and submit a plan if the monitoring shows noncompliance.
The company didn’t immediately comment. Iola’s city administrator didn’t immediately respond to phone or email messages.
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Russell Stover Candies agrees to $585K settlement
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