Washington-DuPont and Lucite International Inc. have agreed to pay a $2 million civil penalty to settle Clean Air Act violations at a sulfuric acid plant in Belle, W. Va., according to the U.S. Justice Department, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the state of West Virginia. The sulfuric acid plant is located on a 100-acre chemical manufacturing complex along the Kanawha River. The plant is owned by Lucite and operated by DuPont. The companies will pay $1 million to the United States and $1 million to the state of West Virginia. Further, the companies chose on their own to shut down the sulfuric acid manufacturing unit of a larger chemical facility at the site, and the settlement confirms this agreement. Under the settlement, the sulfuric acid unit is scheduled to shut down by April 1, 2010. The government had alleged that the companies made modifications to their plant in 1996 without first obtaining pre-construction permits and installing required pollution control equipment. The Belle sulfuric acid plant burns sulfuric acid sludge, which creates sulfur dioxide. Most of the sulfur dioxide is converted to sulfuric acid and recovered, but a portion of the chemical is emitted to the atmosphere. In addition to sulfur dioxide, the plant also emits sulfuric acid mist, nitrogen dioxide, and carbon monoxide.
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