  
3/19/2026
WT Staff
 Got water questions? Have knowledge of a CWA crime? Give us a call at 877-52-WATER (877-529-2837), or email us at info@wtoh.us
Thursday, March 19, 2026 851 am EDT
CWA CrimeBox
Environmental Crimes Historic Conviction: Fiscal Year 2012; Case ID# CR_2313 (Indiana)
Polymer plant spills flammable wastewater into the local WWTP, sentenced to fine and restitution for damage
One of 867 Criminal Prosecutions under the Clean Water Act (from 1989-2024)
Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs)are exposed to blast and explosion risk when flammables enter the collection mains and treatment works. Flammable liquids, gases and combustible dusts can produce explosions that threaten workers and damage equipment.
The Defendant in this case is a subsidiary of Taiwanese company manufacturing polyester resins and acrylics from a 21,000 square foot facility in Mooresville, Indiana. From the Defendant's website, the company's solid acrylic resin products are "soluble in solvents, alcohol, water in alkaline pH, for printing inks, plastic coating, metal coating, marine paint, concrete and wall paints, heat seal, aersol paint."
In May 2007, material with a flashpoint below 99 degrees was detected in the Mooresville WWTP. An investigation tracked the flammable material to the Defendant's facility. The defendant plead guilty to the felony Clean Water Act violation. The Defendant admitted that an overflow occurred when an employee transferred toxic water from an outdoor tank to a smaller, indoor tank. The 5000 gallon tank overflowed inside the facility, running down into the floor drains leading to the public sewer system. Sentencing included a federal fine and a restitution payment to Town of Mooresville to cover the damages.
Federal Fines: $18,000; Restitution: $82,424
See last week's CWA CrimeBox So you can operate a backhoe, just don't do this with it..., here.
CWA CrimeBox briefs are compiled from EPA Criminal Enforcement records.
|
|
|
|
