Doe Run Resources Corporation Settlement
Resources
Press Release (10/08/10) Consent Decree (PDF) 174pp, 486KB, About PDF )



### "For years families with children near Doe Run’s facilities have been exposed to unacceptable levels of lead, one of the most dangerous neurotoxins in the environment, infants and young children are at the greatest risk from lead exposure, which even at low levels can cause behavioral problems, learning deficits and lowered IQ. Today’s settlement requires Doe Run to take aggressive actions to clean up their act and work to ensure that families living near the company’s facilities are protected from lead poisoning and other harmful pollution." - Cynthia Giles, Assistant Administrator of
EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance and Assurance. You are here: EPA Home Compliance and Enforcement Enforcement Civil Enforcement Information Resources Civil Cases and Set tlements Doe Run Resources Corporation Settlement



# Doe Run Resources Corporation Settlement

(Washington, DC - October 08, 2010) Doe Run Resourc es Corp. of St. Louis, North America’s largest lead pr oducer, has agreed to spend approximately $65 million to correc t violations of several environmental laws at 10 of its lead min ing, milling and smelting facilities in southeast Missouri, the Justice Department, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Missouri Department of Natural Resources announced today. The settlement also requires the company to pay a $7 million civil penalty.

On this page:

Overview of Company and Facility Locations Violations Injunctive Relief Pollutant Reductions Health and Environmental Effects Civil Penalty State Partners Comment Period Contact 

# Overview of Company and Facility Locations

The Doe Run Resources Corporation and The Buick Resource Recycling Facility, LLC (collectively Doe Run), operate a lead mining company headquartered in St. Louis with facilities in an area of southeast Misso uri known as the Viburnum Trend.

Doe Run owns and operates the only remaining primary lead smelter in the United States in Herculaneum, Mo. Doe Run also owns and operates several mining and milling facilities throughout th e Viburnum Trend, as well as a secondary lead smelter (Buick Resource Recycling Facility), and a former primary lead smelter (Glover Facility).

Ore from the mines at the Doe Run facilities is cru shed, milled, and processed; lead concentrate is then transported from the mills by c ontract carrier trucks 110 miles to the



## Civil Enforcement Page 1 of 7 Doe Run Resources Corporation Settlement | Compliance and Enforcement | US EPA

8/10/2011 http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/cases/civil/mm/doerun.htmlHerculaneum smelter for smelting and refining, or 1 20 miles to the Southeast Missouri Port

Authority to be loaded onto barges for shipment ove rseas, mostly to China.

The facilities involved in this settlement are all located in Missouri and listed below:

Brushy Creek Mine/Mill Facility, Bunker, Mo. Buick Mine/Mill Facility, Boss, Mo. Buick Resources Recycling Facility, Boss, Mo. Fletcher Mine/Mill Facility, Bunker, Mo. Glover Facility, Annapolis, Mo. Herculaneum Lead Smelter Facility, Herculaneum, Mo. Sweetwater Mine/Mill Facility, Ellington, Mo. Viburnum Mine #35 (Casteel) Facility, Bixby, Mo. Viburnum Mine/Mill Facility, Viburnum, Mo. West Fork Unit Facility, Bunker, Mo. 

# Violations

Doe Run has agreed to a proposed Consent Decree res olving civil violations of the following federal laws:

Clean Air Act (CAA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 7410, 7412, 7475, 7503, 7661a, 7661b, and 7661c Clean Water Act (CWA), 33 U.S.C. §§ 1311, 1321, and 1342 Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), 42 U .S.C. §§ 6925-6935, and 6973 Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act (EPCRA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 11004 and 11023 Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), 42 U.S.C. § 9603 

# Injunctive Relief

The proposed consent decree requires the injunctive measures below which are estimated to cost $65.8 million. Doe Run has already corrected the EPCRA/CERCLA violations.

To address the CAA violations, Doe Run will: Shut down the acid plant and sintering machine and stop shipping lead concentrate to the Herculaneum facility by December 31, 2013.

Comply with a production limit of 130,000 tons per year (tpy) of finished primary lead on a 12-month rolling average across its facilities until the shutdown in 2013.

Comply with the following rates and caps: Sinter production shall not exceed a 12-month rolli ng tonnage of 326,370 tons. Blast furnace sinter consumption shall not exceed a 12-month rolling tonnage of 326,370 tons. Emissions of lead shall comply with the 1.0 pound p er ton of lead limit set forth in 40 C.F.R. § 63.1543.

Continuously operate certified emission rate monito rs (CERMS) for sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ) at the smelter.

Obtain federally enforceable state-issued permits a nd update its Title V permits to reflect the injunctive relief requirements of the c onsent decree.

To address the CWA violations, Doe Run will: Ensure continuing compliance with its current and f uture National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits: 

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8/10/2011 http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/cases/civil/mm/doerun.htmlParticipate in an expedited process for resolving permit appeals it has filed relating to recently issued NPDES permits for its facilities in southeast Missouri. New NDPES permit limits at Doe Run’s facilities con tain more stringent water quality-based limits. Doe Run may ultimately need to install major controls in order to comply with them. Conduct informal negotiation with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) and the use of a court-appointed dispute-res olver to determine any remaining permit issues. Abide by the dispute

- resolver ’ s decision and waive further appeal rights under state law.

Collect surface and underground water data to evaluate water quality and potential for pollutant load reductions at ten of its facilit ies. Using this data, Doe Run will: Establish underground water management plans at each facility designed to assess procedures and methodologies to reduce metal s loadings in mine water and underground process water. At each facility, establish surface water management plans to manage process wastewater and stormwater (including mine water pum ped to the surface) in compliance with all NPDES permits.

Complete several site

- specific measures at the following facilities: Herculaneum facility Install and continuously operate a second lime slur ry tank to address pH consistency. Assess the characteristics of water entering the slag water collection system and investigate potential for treatment. Install a truck wash recycling system to recycle wa sh water and reduce hydraulic loading to the wastewater treatment plant

. Glover facility Evaluate the effectiveness of chemical reagents used at the wast ewater treatment plant and implement any recommended chang es in the use of these chemicals. Evaluate the use of sodium sulfide to reduce thalli um in the wastewater treatment system and implement any recommendations provided through this evaluation. Remove any slag washed out of the slag storage area and stabilize the containment berm around the slag storage area. Buick Resource Recycling Facility Continuously operate an additional sand vertical gr avity filter at the wastewater treatment plant. Install equipment for recycling non

- contact cooling water in the battery desulfurization and crystallization areas and insta ll return pumps for the blast furnace cooling water to allow reuse of the n on-contact cooling water. West Fork Facility Remove and replace the substrate in the north biocell of the wastewater treatment plant and eliminate the discharge from th e domestic wastewater treatment unit

To address the RCRA violations, Doe Run will :
Take various measures to correct RCRA violations identified at the Brushy Creek, Buick Resource Recycling, and Herculaneum Lead Smel ter facilities during prior inspections, comply with permits, and improve gener al RCRA compliance. Investigate and clean up the Herculaneum facility to health

- based cleanup levels appropriate for the designated future use of the pr operty after shutdown of the Herculaneum smelter. Provide initial financial assurance of $8.14 million in the form of a trust fund to be completely funded over the next three years for the cleanup work at Herculaneum. The trust fund will be used in the event the compan y is unable to perform the cleanup action. 

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8/10/2011 http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/cases/civil/mm/doerun.htmlAir Pollutants Tons per Year (tpy)

Carbon Dioxide (CO 2 ) 101,000 tpy Sulfur Dioxide (SO 2 ) 42,000 tpy Expand its financial assurance and remediation accordingly should more significant engineering controls or greater monitoring be requi red as a result of the siteinvestigation. Provide financial assurance for the cleanup of its six active or form er mine and mill facilities including Brushy Creek, Buick, Fletcher, Sweetwater, Viburnum, and West Fork. The total cost of this financial assurance i s currently estimated by Doe Run to be $20-25 million in 2010 dollars.

Transportation and Yard Contamination Injunctive Relief EPA and Doe Run have agreed on a modification of a 2007 administrative order on consent (Modified AOC) that requires: Improved washing and inspection of trucks hauling lead

- bearing materials. Independent auditing of the washing and inspection activities. Additional sampling of residential properties along the truck routes used for hauling lead-bearing materials. An assessment to implement improvements to its transpo rtation and handling operations.

In order to address contamination revealed in Herculaneum residential yards, Doe Run is entering into a RCRA AOC (Yard AOC) requirin g: Annual sampling of all residential properties, vacant lots, and high child impact areas (e.g., schools, day care centers, churches) w ithin 1.5 miles of its smelter facility. Cleanup of all properties with lead soil concentrations above a 40 0 parts per million (ppm) action level within 18 months.

Once the smelter operation is shut down at the end of 2013 and the s melter property is cleaned up, Doe Run will sample all residential properties, vacant lots, and high child impact areas one final time and clean up any additional properties with lead soil concentrations above 400 ppm.



## Additional Injunctive Relief

This settlement will require Doe Run to expend no l ess than $17.5 million to implement the following additional injunctive relief measures:

Enclosure of lead concentrate handling, loading, an d storage areas under negative pressure with emissions routed to a baghouse at fou r facilities over the next five years (and any future facility at the time of openi ng) at an estimated cost of $10-12 million. Stream mitigation activities on 8.5 miles of Bee Fork Cree k (near Fletcher Mine/Mill) at an estimated cost of $5.8 million. Mitigation projects in the affected communities over the next four year at an estimated cost of $2 million, including a minimum o f $300,000 for clean diesel retrofits $200,000 for school laboratory clean

- outs $300,000 in school energy efficiency projects $300,000 in ground source heat pump projects 

# Pollutant Reductions

As a result of this settlement, Doe Run will reduce the following pollutants by the amounts below: 

### Page 4 of 7 Doe Run Resources Corporation Settlement | Compliance and Enforcement | US EPA

8/10/2011 http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/cases/civil/mm/doerun.htmlLead (Pb) 162 tpy

Particulate Matter (PM 10 ) 23 tpy Carbon Monoxide (CO) 22 tpy Nitrous Oxides (NO x ) 13.5 tpy Volatile Organic Chemicals (VOCs) 2.5 tpy Water Pollutants Tons per Year (tpy) Oil & Grease 140.5 tpy Zinc 41.8 tpy Nitrate 16.4 tpy Total Suspended Solids 6.4 tpy Chemical Oxygen Demand 5.4 tpy Lead 3.5 tpy Cadmium 0.95 tpy Biochemical Oxygen Demand 0.89 tpy Arsenic 0.13 tpy Copper 0.08 tpy 

# Health and

Environmental Effects

The pollutants reduced under this settlement are kn own to have numerous adverse, significant environmental and health effects.

Lead: Lead at high levels can cause convulsions, coma, and even death. Lower levels of lead can cause adverse health effects on the cen tral nervous system, kidney, and blood cells. Fetuses, infants, and children are mo re vulnerable to lead exposure than adults since lead is more easily absorbed into grow ing bodies, causing delays in physical and mental development, lower IQ levels, s hortened attention spans, and increased behavioral problems.

Doe Run’s remediation of contaminated yards and hig h child-impact areas as well as its transportation improvements are estimated to re duce lead pollution by a total of 822 tons.

Sulfur Dioxide : High concentrations of sulfur dioxide affect breath ing and may aggravate existing respiratory and cardiovascular d isease. Sensitive populations include asthmatics, individuals with bronchitis or emphysema, children, and the elderly. Sulfur dioxide is also a primary contribut or to acid rain.

Nitrogen Oxides – Nitrogen oxides can cause ground- level ozone, acid rain, particulate matter, global warming, water quality deterioration , and visual impairment. Nitrogen oxides play a major role, with volatile organic che micals, in the atmospheric reactions that produce ozone. Children, people with lung dis eases such as asthma, and people who work or exercise outside are susceptible to adv erse effects such as damage to lung tissue and reduction in lung function.

Volatile Organic Compounds : VOCs, along with NOx, play a major role in the atmospheric reactions that produce ozone, which is the primary constituent of smog. People with lung disease, children, older adults, a nd people who are active can be affected when ozone levels are unhealthy. Ground-le vel ozone exposure is linked to a variety of short-term health problems, including lu ng irritation and difficulty breathing, as well as long-term problems, such as p ermanent lung damage from repeated exposure, aggravated asthma, reduced lung capacity, and increased susceptibility to respiratory illnesses such as pne umonia and bronchitis. 

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8/10/2011 http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/cases/civil/mm/doerun.htmlCarbon Monoxide : Carbon Monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas that is formed when carbon in fuel is not burned completely. It is a c omponent of motor vehicle exhaust, which contributes about 56 percent of all Carbon Mo noxide emissions nationwide. Carbon monoxide can cause harmful health effects by reducing oxygen delivery to the body's organs (like the heart and brain) and tissue s.

Carbon Dioxide : Carbon dioxide is one of six greenhouse gases subj ect to an April 17, 2009 proposed endangerment finding.

Particulate Matter: Short term exposure to PM can aggravate lung disea se, cause asthma attacks and acute bronchitis, may increase s usceptibility to respiratory infections and has been linked to heart attacks.

Arsenic : Arsenic is a carcinogen, and chronic exposure can result in fa tigue, gastrointestinal distress, anemia, neuropathy, and skin lesions that can develop into skin cancer in mammals.

Cadmium : Cadmium is a probable carcinogen, and can cause pul monary irritation and kidney disease.

Copper : Drinking water containing large concentrations of copper can cause gastrointestinal distress and liver or kidney damag e. High concentrations of copper can become toxic to aquatic life.

Zinc : Zinc can cause stomach cramps, nausea, vomiting, and anemia. 

# Civil Penalty

Doe Run will pay a $7 million penalty, to be shared equally between the United States and
Missouri.


# State Partners

Missouri is a co-plaintiff


# Comment Period

The proposed settlement, to be lodged in the U.S. D istrict Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, as well as the Modified AOC and the Yard AOC, are subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court or EPA approval. Inf ormation on submitting comments is available at the Department of Justice website. 

# For more information, contact:

Danielle Fidler U.S. EPA Special Litigation & Projects Enforcement Division 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW Washington DC 20460 (202) 564-0660 fidler.danielle@epa.gov 

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8/10/2011 http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/cases/civil/mm/doerun.htmlhttp://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/cases/civil /mm/doerun.html Last updated on Tuesday, October 12, 2010 

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