Responding to an Environmental Violations Civil Investigative Demand (Information Request)
So your probably sitting there with this EPA information request or DOJ environmental crimes subpoena and your entire business is about to be destroyed. Maybe you had a chemical spill you didn’t report properly. Maybe your wastewater discharge exceeded permit limits. Or maybe your just caught up in there latest environmental enforcement sweep. Look, we get it. Your ABSOLUTELY PETRIFIED. And you should be! Because criminal environmental violations are FELONIES carrying years in federal prison and civil penalties can reach $100,000 PER DAY!
What Makes Environmental Investigations So Terrifying?
Let me explain the environmental nightmare your facing. EPA has both civil and criminal enforcement powers that can destroy you simultaneously!
Civil violations are STRICT LIABILITY – no intent needed! Exceeded your discharge permit by 0.01%? Violation! Stored hazardous waste one day too long? VIOLATION! Forgot to file monthly monitoring report? That’s a separate violation for EVERY DAY it was late! We’ve seen companies face million-dollar penalties for paperwork errors!
Criminal enforcement is even worse! All federal environmental crimes are FELONIES except pesticide violations! “Knowing” violations mean prison time – and “knowing” just means you knew you were discharging something, not that it was illegal!
How Crushing Are Environmental Penalties?
Hold onto your permits because these numbers will bankrupt your company overnight!
Clean Water Act violations carry civil penalties up to $65,000 per day per violation! Had unpermitted discharge for a month? That’s $2 MILLION! Criminal violations add 3 years prison for negligent violations, 15 years for knowing violations, and if someone gets hurt? 30 YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON!
Clean Air Act penalties are equally devastating – $100,000 per day civil penalties! RCRA hazardous waste violations? $75,000 per day PLUS cleanup costs that can reach hundreds of millions! We’ve seen small manufacturers face $50 million penalties for violations they didn’t even know were happening!
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(212) 300-5196What Triggers EPA Criminal Investigations?
Your probably wondering “How did EPA find out?” Let me tell you what puts companies in there crosshairs:
Employee whistleblowers are the biggest threat! EPA has robust whistleblower programs that reward employees for reporting violations! That disgruntled worker who knows about your waste practices? They could get rich destroying you!
Citizen suits allow ANYONE to sue you for environmental violations! Environmental groups monitor discharge reports looking for violations to sue over. Competitors report each other to eliminate competition. Even routine inspections turn criminal when inspectors find unreported violations!
Todd Spodek
Lead Attorney & Founder
Featured on Netflix's "Inventing Anna," Todd Spodek brings decades of high-stakes criminal defense experience. His aggressive approach has secured dismissals and acquittals in cases others deemed unwinnable.
What About RCRA Hazardous Waste Violations?
RCRA violations are particularly DEVASTATING! Criminal RCRA violations include prison time for executives!
Your manufacturing company just received a Civil Investigative Demand from the DOJ requesting five years of wastewater discharge records, internal environmental compliance audits, and employee communications related to Clean Water Act permit exceedances. You discovered that a plant manager had been falsifying discharge monitoring reports submitted to your state environmental agency, and you're unsure whether producing these documents will expose the company to criminal prosecution.
Should we comply with the CID and turn over documents that could reveal our plant manager was submitting false discharge monitoring reports to regulators?
A Civil Investigative Demand under 31 U.S.C. § 3733 is a civil tool, but the information you produce can absolutely be referred to the DOJ Environment and Natural Resources Division's Environmental Crimes Section for criminal prosecution under the Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. § 1319(c). You need to engage experienced environmental defense counsel immediately to assert applicable privileges, including attorney-client privilege and the work product doctrine, and to evaluate whether your company qualifies for the EPA's Self-Audit Policy, which can reduce penalties by 75 to 100 percent if violations are voluntarily disclosed. Your attorney can also negotiate the scope of the CID to prevent an overly broad fishing expedition while keeping you in compliance with your legal obligation to respond, since ignoring a CID can result in a federal court enforcement action compelling production.
This is general information only. Contact us for advice specific to your situation.
Stored waste without proper permit? Criminal violation! Didn’t maintain proper manifests? CRIMINAL! Mixed incompatible wastes? That’s “knowing endangerment” carrying 15 years prison! We had a client imprisoned for 5 years because his employee put solvent rags in the wrong dumpster!
The “cradle to grave” liability means your responsible FOREVER! That waste you properly disposed of 20 years ago? If the disposal facility has problems now, YOUR liable! We’ve seen retired executives pulled back into criminal prosecutions for waste disposed decades earlier!
