“This Consent Agreement and Final Order serves as notice that the EPA has reason to believe that Respondent has violated the Chemical Accident Prevention Provisions in 40 C.F.R. Part 68, promulgated pursuant to Section 112(r) of the CAA, 42 U.S.C. § 7412(r), and that Respondent is therefore in violation of Section 112(r) of the CAA.”

💡 This establishes that Kugler Oil violated federal law designed to prevent catastrophic chemical releases that endanger communities.

“Information gathered during the EPA inspection revealed that Respondent had greater than 10,000 pounds of anhydrous ammonia in a process at its facility.”

💡 This quantity of anhydrous ammonia, a highly toxic substance, triggers the strictest federal safety requirements due to the potential for mass casualties.

“The facility failed to review and update the hazard assessment every five years as per 40 CFR 68.36(a).”

💡 Outdated hazard assessments mean the company and community operated with incorrect information about who would be harmed in a chemical release.

“The facility hazard assessment did not meet the requirements regarding the estimation of the affected populations listed in 40 CFR 68.30(c) & (d) and 40 CFR 68.39(e).”

💡 Without accurate population impact estimates, emergency planners cannot prepare adequate evacuation or medical response plans.

“Respondent failed to update and revalidate their process hazard analysis (PHA) every five years as required by 40 CFR 68.67(f).”

💡 Stale safety analyses leave new hazards unidentified and workers exposed to dangers management never documented.

“Respondent failed to develop and implement written operating procedures for temporary operations and emergency operations and failed to address safety systems and their functions as required by 40 CFR 68.69(a)(1)(iii), (a)(1)(v), and (a)(4).”

💡 Without proper emergency procedures, workers may not know how to respond during equipment failures or chemical releases, turning manageable incidents into disasters.

“Respondent failed to certify that they have evaluated compliance with Subpart D at least every three years and to promptly determine and document an appropriate response to each of the findings of the compliance audit and document that deficiencies have been corrected as required by 40 CFR 68.79(a) & (d).”

💡 Skipping compliance audits means violations and safety deficiencies go undetected and uncorrected, compounding risks over time.

“The EPA inspection revealed that Respondent failed to annually coordinate with first responders as required by 40 CFR 68.93(a).”

💡 Local fire departments and emergency responders were left uninformed about chemical hazards and proper response protocols, crippling emergency preparedness.

“The EPA inspection revealed that Respondent failed to report the correct 24-hour telephone number for their emergency contact on their RMP as required by 40 CFR 68.160(b)(6).”

💡 An incorrect emergency number could delay critical response time during an actual release, potentially costing lives.

“Respondent agrees that, in settlement of the claims alleged herein, Respondent shall pay a compromised civil penalty of One-Hundred Nineteen Thousand Dollars ($119,000.00).”

💡 The penalty amount reveals how little financial consequence the company faces for years of endangering a community.

“For the purposes of this proceeding, as required by 40 C.F.R. § 22.18(b)(2), Respondent: admits the jurisdictional allegations set forth herein; neither admits nor denies the specific factual allegations stated herein.”

💡 This standard legal language lets the company avoid publicly acknowledging it endangered lives, limiting accountability and public awareness.

“Anhydrous ammonia is a ‘regulated substance’ pursuant to 40 C.F.R. § 68.3. The threshold quantity for anhydrous ammonia, as listed in 40 C.F.R. § 68.130, is 10,000 pounds.”

💡 Federal law sets a 10,000-pound threshold because releases above this amount can cause mass casualties through severe respiratory injuries, burns, and death.

“The Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996, 31 U.S.C. § 3701, as amended, and the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015, 28 U.S.C. § 2461, and implementing regulations at 40 C.F.R. Part 19, increased these statutory maximum penalties to $57,617 for violations that occur after November 2, 2015, and for which penalties are assessed on or after December 27, 2023.”

💡 At $57,617 per day of violation, the $119,000 settlement suggests only about two days’ worth of penalties, despite violations spanning years.

“In accordance with 40 C.F.R. § 22.18(c), completion of the terms of this Consent Agreement and Final Order resolves Respondent’s liability for federal civil penalties for the violations and facts specifically alleged above.”

💡 Once Kugler Oil pays the fine, the case is closed regardless of how inadequate the penalty may be relative to the harm risked.

“On or before ninety (90) days after the effective date of the Final Order approving this CAFO, Kugler Oil will submit to EPA a Certification of Compliance, establishing Kugler Oil’s completion of the Process Hazard Analysis and a system to promptly address the team’s findings and recommendations for all covered processes at the facility have been developed as required by 40 C.F.R. § 68.67(e) and (f).”

💡 The company is simply being ordered to complete what it should have done years ago under existing law, with no additional penalties for the delay.