Deerfield, Ill.-CF Industries Holdings Inc. said Aug. 6 that it has agreed to the terms of a consent decree with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection involving compliance with the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). The agreement resolves a Notice of Violation (NOV) issued in 2005 that alleged that certain practices at the company’s Plant City, Fla., phosphate complex violated RCRA. The consent decree will not be final until it has been approved by a federal court. Under the terms of the agreement, the evolution of which has been described in previous disclosures, the company will pay a civil penalty of approximately $700,000; modify certain operating practices; undertake capital projects; and accelerate approximately $55 million of funding for future closure, maintenance, and monitoring activities. Additional funding may be required in future years. “We are pleased to have resolved this issue through a negotiated settlement that reaffirms our commitment to environmental stewardship,” said Stephen Wilson, CF chairman, president, and CEO. “We have always sought to lead the industry in implementing practices that protect our natural resources, such as construction of our industry-first fully lined phosphogypsum stack system at Plant City.” The 2005 NOV arose from EPA’s broad phosphate industry enforcement initiative. The company said that it believes it was in the best interest of shareholders to negotiate this pioneering agreement in response to the initiative. In doing so, the company has not admitted any violation of law or regulation.
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