Corporate Misconduct Accountability Project
Bridge Point McCook 3, LLC · Expedited Settlement Agreement
Bridge Point McCook 3 Stored Hazardous Waste Illegally for 143 Days
Illinois real estate developer kept over a ton of hazardous waste without permits, training, or emergency plans, then paid just $7,500 to close the case.
HIGH SEVERITY
TL;DR
Bridge Point McCook 3 bought an 87-acre former railyard in December 2021 and inherited hazardous waste from the previous owner. Instead of disposing of it within the legal 90-day limit, the company stored over 3,400 pounds of hazardous waste for 143 days without a permit. The firm also failed to train workers, create emergency spill plans, obtain its own EPA identification number, or file required annual reports. In July 2024, the EPA settled the case for $7,500.
One ton of toxic waste, zero emergency plan, and a fine smaller than a used car.
$7,500
Total penalty paid by Bridge Point McCook 3
3,426 lbs
Total hazardous waste stored illegally
143 days
Days waste sat on-site beyond legal 90-day limit
87 acres
Size of purchased property
0
Workers trained in hazardous waste handling
The Allegations: A Breakdown
Core Allegations
What Bridge Point McCook 3 did wrong · 6 points
| 01 | Bridge Point stored 2,400 pounds of hazardous waste for 143 days without a permit, starting from December 14, 2021 when it bought the property, until disposal on April 27, 2022. Illinois law allows only 90 days of unpermitted on-site storage. | high |
| 02 | The company stored an additional 1,026 pounds of hazardous waste for over 143 days, disposing of it on May 6, 2022. The company never obtained a permit, interim status, or extension for the storage period. | high |
| 03 | Bridge Point admitted it had no contingency plan, emergency action plan, or spill prevention plan for the facility. Illinois regulations require every hazardous waste facility to maintain such plans. | high |
| 04 | The company provided no hazardous waste training to facility personnel and had no program in place to train workers. Illinois law mandates classroom or on-the-job instruction for anyone handling hazardous materials. | high |
| 05 | Bridge Point shipped hazardous waste off-site in April and May 2022 using the previous owner’s EPA identification number (ILD006009600) instead of obtaining its own, violating identification requirements. | medium |
| 06 | The company failed to file the required annual hazardous waste report by March 1, 2023, for waste it generated in 2022, admitting in October 2023 that no reports had been submitted. | medium |
Regulatory Failures
How the system let this happen · 5 points
| 01 | The EPA’s expedited settlement program allowed Bridge Point to resolve five separate violations with a single $7,500 payment, converting environmental oversight into a transactional checkbox rather than a deterrent. | high |
| 02 | Illinois regulations allow generators to store hazardous waste on-site for 90 days without a permit, creating a loophole that Bridge Point exploited by stretching the grace period to 143 days and then paying a penalty smaller than typical redevelopment costs. | high |
| 03 | The settlement required Bridge Point to neither admit nor deny the factual allegations, allowing the company to avoid formal acknowledgment of wrongdoing while waiving its right to a hearing. | medium |
| 04 | The final order imposed no injunctive relief, no third-party audits, and no ongoing public monitoring requirements. The EPA explicitly reserved only its right to pursue future violations. | high |
| 05 | The enforcement timeline stretched over eight months from the initial information request in August 2023 to the company’s corrective response in March 2024, allowing redevelopment work to continue during the investigation. | medium |
Profit Over People
How Bridge Point prioritized development over safety · 5 points
| 01 | Bridge Point purchased an 87-acre former railyard near Chicago with intent to demolish and redevelop the property. The company treated hazardous waste management as a cost to be minimized rather than a safety priority. | high |
| 02 | The $7,500 penalty represents less than the cost of preparing a robust emergency plan or conducting site-wide worker training. The company saved money by skipping compliance steps and paying the fine later. | high |
| 03 | By storing waste beyond legal limits and avoiding permit delays, Bridge Point channeled resources toward faster redevelopment while externalizing environmental and safety risks to workers and nearby residents. | high |
| 04 | The company’s decision to use the previous owner’s EPA ID number instead of obtaining its own allowed it to ship waste more quickly, avoiding administrative delays that would have slowed demolition work. | medium |
| 05 | Bridge Point only corrected violations after federal enforcement began, demonstrating a strategy of complying just enough, just in time, and only when consequences became unavoidable. | high |
Economic Fallout
Who really pays the price · 4 points
| 01 | Bridge Point’s failure to file annual hazardous waste reports deprives state agencies of vital data used to forecast cleanup funding and emergency response budgets, forcing the public to shoulder the analytical gap. | medium |
| 02 | The absence of a spill contingency plan transfers financial risk to local fire departments, which would be forced to improvise emergency response at taxpayers’ expense if disaster struck. | high |
| 03 | Every hour first responders spend compensating for corporate negligence translates into overtime bills, equipment wear, and taxpayer strain while the offending firm books redevelopment profits. | medium |
| 04 | The $7,500 penalty is non-deductible for federal tax purposes but remains a rounding error in a metropolitan Chicago industrial redevelopment budget likely worth tens of millions of dollars. | high |
Worker Exploitation
Safety training sacrificed for speed · 5 points
| 01 | Bridge Point admitted in responses dated October 3, 2023, and March 29, 2024, that it had not provided any hazardous waste training to facility personnel and had no program in place to do so. | high |
| 02 | Illinois regulations require every worker handling or working near hazardous materials to receive classroom or on-the-job instruction directed by qualified personnel, covering emergency procedures and contingency plan implementation. | high |
| 03 | By cutting the training requirement, Bridge Point left workers unprepared for leaks, spills, or fires, shifting immediate risk onto the people tasked with clearing the hazardous site. | high |
| 04 | The company never prepared a contingency plan, meaning workers had no written emergency procedures to follow in case of chemical exposure, spills, or other accidents. | high |
| 05 | Untrained labor is cheaper labor, especially when redevelopment deadlines loom. The company’s failure to train workers represents a textbook example of profit trumping worker welfare. | high |
Public Health and Safety
The risks Bridge Point created · 4 points
| 01 | Hazardous waste stored beyond legal limits can leach, explode, or ignite. The longer it sits, the higher the odds of environmental release. Bridge Point kept more than a ton of material on-site for 143 days without proper controls. | high |
| 02 | Without trained personnel, even routine handling becomes dangerous. A dropped drum, faulty forklift, or unexpected chemical reaction could release toxins into air, soil, or groundwater. | high |
| 03 | The company’s failure to secure its own EPA identification number blurred accountability chains, complicating any future investigation of off-site contamination or tracking of disposed materials. | medium |
| 04 | The facility operated one misstep away from calamity, yet was insulated from serious consequence by a regulatory framework too weak to extract meaningful change or impose preventive measures. | high |
Community Impact
McCook residents bore the risk · 4 points
| 01 | The facility sits at 9130 W. 55th Street in McCook, Illinois, just west of Chicago’s densely populated suburbs. For 143 days, more than a ton of hazardous waste sat without a permit or contingency plan. | high |
| 02 | Any accident during the storage period could have carried toxins into the air or seeped toward local groundwater. Without a spill blueprint, local first responders would have faced a chemical mystery in real time. | high |
| 03 | Though no release occurred, the community bore the silent burden of uncertainty while Bridge Point advanced a profitable demolition schedule on the 87-acre property. | medium |
| 04 | If a spill or fire had occurred, taxpayers would have funded emergency response while the company’s limited penalty insulated it from bearing the full cost of its risk-taking. | high |
Corporate Accountability Failures
How Bridge Point escaped real consequences · 5 points
| 01 | The final order binds only this single incident and imposes no ongoing monitoring, third-party audits, or public disclosure requirements. Executives remain untouched and shareholders feel no sting. | high |
| 02 | Bridge Point certified that alleged violations have been corrected, but the settlement contains no verification mechanism or independent audit requirement to confirm compliance. | medium |
| 03 | The company waived its right to a hearing, preventing public testimony, cross-examination, or judicial scrutiny of its conduct. The expedited settlement short-circuited any public accountability process. | high |
| 04 | So long as penalties remain predictable and low, compliance lapses become just another cost center, effectively privatizing profit while socializing risk to surrounding communities. | high |
| 05 | The governing logic is clear: when modest penalties are predictable and swift, non-compliance risks become affordable business decisions rather than deterrents. | high |
The PR Machine
Neither admit nor deny · 4 points
| 01 | Bridge Point signed an agreement stating it neither admits nor denies the factual allegations while consenting to the penalty. This boilerplate phrasing accepts punishment while dodging moral responsibility. | medium |
| 02 | The company admitted EPA jurisdiction and that it is subject to RCRA regulations, but refused to formally acknowledge the specific violations described in the settlement. | medium |
| 03 | By waiving the right to a hearing, Bridge Point prevented depositions, document discovery, and public testimony that could have revealed internal decision-making about cost-cutting and safety shortcuts. | high |
| 04 | The settlement’s passive-voice language transforms hazardous waste storage violations into technical irregularities rather than public health threats, diluting accountability through careful legal phrasing. | medium |
Wealth Disparity
Fines that feel like rounding errors · 4 points
| 01 | Bridge Point acquired an 87-acre former railyard in prime metropolitan Chicago real estate, a deal likely worth tens of millions of dollars. Against that backdrop, a $7,500 penalty reads like a parking ticket. | high |
| 02 | When regulatory penalties allow hazardous waste violations to cost less than a single month of site security, the system tilts decisively toward capital accumulation, widening the wealth gap between corporate owners and working communities. | high |
| 03 | The penalty is smaller than the cost of drafting a robust emergency plan, conducting site-wide training, or securing proper permits. Cutting corners and paying the fine later proved cheaper than compliance. | high |
| 04 | In the ruthless arithmetic of shareholder value, a $7,500 check is cheaper than building safety culture. Neoliberal incentives almost guarantee this outcome when fines remain fixed regardless of company size or project value. | high |
Exploiting Delay
Running out the clock · 4 points
| 01 | The EPA sent its information request on August 15, 2023. Bridge Point did not respond until October 3, 2023, a seven-week delay during which redevelopment work continued. | medium |
| 02 | The EPA issued a Notice of Potential Violation on January 25, 2024. Bridge Point waited until March 29, 2024, to provide its corrective response, adding another two months to the timeline. | medium |
| 03 | The enforcement chronology stretched over eight months from initial request to final response. Every day without a shutdown kept demolition and redevelopment cash flowing. | high |
| 04 | Under late-stage capitalism, time becomes leverage. When the price of stalling is a small, predictable fine, delay morphs from defensive tactic into profit center. | high |
The Bottom Line
A system working as designed · 5 points
| 01 | More than a ton of hazardous waste sat out of compliance for months, yet the case resolved for less than the cost of paving a parking lot. This is not an outlier but a feature of a system where corporate accountability is priced, not enforced. | high |
| 02 | While Bridge Point marches toward profitable redevelopment, local residents inherit the residual uncertainty of what might have happened had one drum leaked or one forklift slipped. | high |
| 03 | True public interest lies in prevention, not post-hoc penalties. Yet prevention remains undervalued when shareholder returns sit atop the policy pyramid. | high |
| 04 | Nothing in the record suggests rogue behavior. The case reveals a textbook outcome of neoliberal design where regulations impose fines so low that exceeding limits by 143 days is economically rational. | high |
| 05 | Agencies secure quick compliance numbers and companies chalk penalties up to cost of goods sold. The gears turn smoothly because every cog is calibrated to prioritize uninterrupted capital flow over community safety. | high |
Timeline of Events
December 2021
Bridge Point McCook 3 purchases 87-acre property from Progress Rail Locomotive, inheriting hazardous waste
December 14, 2021
Waste generation date begins for compliance purposes
March 13, 2022
90-day legal storage limit expires
April 27, 2022
Bridge Point ships 2,400 lbs of hazardous waste off-site, 143 days after generation
May 6, 2022
Bridge Point ships additional 1,026 lbs of hazardous waste, still using prior owner’s EPA ID
March 1, 2023
Deadline passes for required annual hazardous waste report; Bridge Point fails to file
August 15, 2023
EPA sends information request to Bridge Point
October 3, 2023
Bridge Point responds, admitting no contingency plan, no training program, no annual reports
January 25, 2024
EPA issues formal Notice of Potential Violation
March 29, 2024
Bridge Point provides corrective response to EPA
July 2, 2024
Bridge Point Vice President Nick Siegel signs expedited settlement agreement
July 26, 2024
Settlement agreement and final order filed with EPA Regional Hearing Clerk
Direct Quotes from the Legal Record
QUOTE 1
Exceeded storage limit by 59%
allegations
“On December 14, 2021, Bridge purchased 87 acres along with all assess from Progress Rail Locomotive, Inc. On April 27, 2022, 2,400 lbs of hazardous waste were sent off-site for disposal. This shipment was generated on December 14, 2021, when Bridge took ownership of the property with the intent to demolish and redevelop the property. As such, Bridge stored the above waste for 143 days from generation date and Respondent had not obtained a permit, interim status nor an extension of the 90-day period.”
💡 Bridge Point stored hazardous waste for 53 days beyond the legal limit without any permit or authorization.
QUOTE 2
No emergency plan whatsoever
allegations
“Respondent stated in their response on October 3, 2023, that a Contingency Plan, Emergency Action Plan, or equivalent Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasures Plan had not been prepared for the Facility.”
💡 The company admitted it had zero emergency plans in place while storing over a ton of hazardous waste.
QUOTE 3
Admitted non-compliance with RCRA
allegations
“In the NOV response on March 29, 2024, Respondent stated, ‘The Bridge facility did not have a RCRA contingency plan that meets all the requirements in 35 IAC 722 Subpart M.'”
💡 Bridge Point explicitly acknowledged its failure to meet federal hazardous waste regulations.
QUOTE 4
Zero worker training
workers
“Respondent stated in responses on October 3, 2023 and March 29, 2024, that they had not provided nor did they have a program in place to provide applicable training to facility personnel.”
💡 Workers handling hazardous waste received no training, violating federal safety requirements.
QUOTE 5
Used wrong EPA ID to hide accountability
allegations
“Respondent shipped hazardous waste offsite on April 27, 2022 (014521312 FLE) and May 6, 2022 (014521307FLE and 01451309 FLE) under the prior owner’s name Progressive Rail – McCook with an ID of ILD006009600.”
💡 Using the previous owner’s identification muddied accountability and violated registration requirements.
QUOTE 6
Never filed required reports
allegations
“Respondent stated in the October 3, 2023 response ‘Annual reports have not been submitted.'”
💡 Failing to report hazardous waste generation deprives regulators of data needed for oversight and emergency planning.
QUOTE 7
Neither admit nor deny loophole
pr_machine
“In signing this Agreement, Respondent: (1) admits that Respondent is subject to RCRA and its implementing regulations; (2) admits that EPA has jurisdiction over Respondent and Respondent’s conduct as alleged herein, (3) neither admits nor denies the factual allegations contained herein; (4) consents to the assessment of this penalty.”
💡 This standard legal language lets companies pay fines without formally acknowledging wrongdoing.
QUOTE 8
Certified violations corrected after the fact
accountability
“By its signature below Respondent certifies, subject to civil and criminal penalties for making a false submission to the United States Government, that: (1) the alleged violations have been corrected, and (2) Respondent has paid the civil penalty in accordance with paragraph 8.”
💡 Bridge Point only fixed the problems after getting caught, demonstrating reactive rather than proactive compliance.
QUOTE 9
Settlement declared in public interest
conclusion
“The EPA and Respondent agree that settlement of this matter for a civil penalty of seven thousand five hundred dollars ($7,500) is in the public interest.”
💡 Regulators framed a minimal penalty as serving the public, despite the serious nature of the violations.
QUOTE 10
EPA reserves future enforcement rights
accountability
“EPA reserves all of its rights to take enforcement action for any other past, present, or future violations by Respondent of RCRA, any other federal statute or regulation, or this Agreement.”
💡 The settlement resolved only these specific violations, leaving the door open for repeat offenses.
QUOTE 11
Penalty not tax-deductible
wealth
“The civil penalty is not deductible for federal tax purposes.”
💡 Even this small restriction on deductibility highlights that penalties are meant as punishment, not business expenses.
QUOTE 12
No hearing, no public scrutiny
accountability
“In signing this Agreement, Respondent…waives the opportunity for a hearing pursuant to Section 3008(b) of RCRA, 42 U.S.C. § 6928(b); and (6) waives any right to contest the allegations contained herein or to appeal the Final Order.”
💡 By waiving its hearing rights, Bridge Point avoided public testimony and cross-examination of its conduct.
Frequently Asked Questions
What exactly did Bridge Point McCook 3 do wrong?
Bridge Point bought an industrial property in December 2021 with hazardous waste on-site. Illinois law allows only 90 days to store that waste without a permit. Bridge Point stored over 3,400 pounds for 143 days, failed to train workers, never created emergency plans, used the wrong EPA ID number, and never filed required reports.
How much hazardous waste was involved?
Bridge Point illegally stored 3,426 pounds (over 1.7 tons) of hazardous waste. It shipped 2,400 pounds on April 27, 2022, and another 1,026 pounds on May 6, 2022, both well beyond the 90-day legal limit.
Why does the 90-day limit exist?
The 90-day rule balances operational flexibility with public safety. Hazardous waste becomes more dangerous the longer it sits because containers can corrode, leak, or react. Limiting storage time without permits reduces the risk of spills, fires, and environmental contamination.
Were any workers or residents actually harmed?
No documented harm occurred, but the risk was real. Without emergency plans or trained personnel, any accident during those 143 days could have released toxins into air, soil, or groundwater. Nearby residents and untrained workers bore that risk while Bridge Point advanced its demolition schedule.
Why was the fine only $7,500?
The EPA used its expedited settlement program, which offers quick resolution in exchange for modest penalties. Bridge Point bought an 87-acre property likely worth tens of millions, making the $7,500 fine economically insignificant and cheaper than the cost of proper compliance.
What does ‘neither admit nor deny’ mean?
It is standard legal language that lets companies pay penalties without formally acknowledging wrongdoing. Bridge Point consented to the fine but refused to admit the factual allegations, protecting its reputation while avoiding public accountability.
Did Bridge Point get its own EPA identification number eventually?
The settlement document states the company obtained EPA ID number ILR000215186 by the time the agreement was signed in July 2024, but it shipped waste in April and May 2022 using the previous owner’s ID, violating identification requirements.
What is an expedited settlement agreement?
It is a fast-track process that lets companies resolve violations quickly by paying a penalty and certifying they have corrected the problems. In exchange, they waive the right to a hearing, avoiding depositions, public testimony, and detailed scrutiny of their conduct.
Can the EPA pursue Bridge Point again for other violations?
Yes. The settlement explicitly states that it resolves only these specific violations. The EPA reserves all rights to take enforcement action for any other past, present, or future violations of RCRA or other federal laws.
What can I do if a company near me is violating environmental rules?
You can file a complaint with your state environmental agency or the EPA Region 5 office. Document what you observe with photos, dates, and descriptions. You can also contact local elected officials, attend public meetings, and support stronger enforcement through advocacy groups.
Please visit this link to read the EPA’s expedited agreement with Bridge Point: https://yosemite.epa.gov/oa/rhc/epaadmin.nsf/Filings/098995B03E93982F85258B6A00528229?OpenDocument
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