New Hampshire scrap yard fined

Grimmel Industries, a metal scrap recycler located on the Piscataqua River in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, faces a fine for allowing polluted stormwater to flow into surrounding waters, in violation of the Clean Water Act. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is seeking a proposed penalty of up to $532,500 from the company.

Stormwater monitoring by the property owner of Grimmel’s Portsmouth facility confirms stormwater discharges from Grimmel’s metal scrap yard operations contain metals, suspended solids and chemical oxygen demand which exceed permit benchmarks. Further, the stormwater discharges contain mercury and PCBs that cause or contribute to an exceedance of water quality standards.

Grimmel had several violations of the “Multi-sector General Permit for Stormwater Discharges Associated with Industrial Activity,” including failing to perform required inspections or sampling, and not performing required reviews of its Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan.