14 DAY TRIAL // The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently made it public news that a concrete and asphalt manufacturer in Spokane, Washington, is to pay a penalty of $25,400 (€20,237.6 / ₤15,425.9) as a result of its failing to announce that lead and nitrate compounds were to be processed within its premises.
Given the fact that most of the chemicals used in various industries nowadays are known to pose significant health threats for those who happen to come into contact with them without taking appropriate safety precautions, companies operating which such compounds are required by law to file reports explaining which harmful substances they intend to process within established time-frames.
However, CPM Development Corporation, a company from Spokane, Washington that specializes in producing concrete and asphalt, failed to abide by these law requirements.
More precisely, back in 2010, the company processed about 100 pounds of lead compounds and 25,000 pounds of nitrate compounds without ever giving anyone the heads up.
As EPA explains, both lead and nitrates are extremely dangerous for public health when not dealt with properly, meaning that the former is known to accumulate in living organisms, and the latter has been proven to cause severe blood conditions.
Moreover, both these types of compounds threaten children and pregnant women first and foremost, so it comes as no surprise that keeping a close eye on their uses in various industries is of utmost importance.
The official website for EPA quotes Kim Ogle, one of the agency's employees, who made a case of how, “Companies have a responsibility to nearby communities to be transparent about the chemicals they use. Many chemicals, such as lead, are especially harmful to children.”
Besides paying the aforementioned penalty, the company found responsible of keeping such information from the authorities also agreed to submit the missing reports concerning how it processed and disposed of the lead and nitrate compounds it operated with three years ago.