$180M Penalty For Toyota In Clean Air Act Violations

$180M Penalty For Toyota In Clean Air Act Violations

Introduction

The United States has filed and simultaneously settled a civil lawsuit against Toyota Motor Corporation, Toyota Motor North America Inc., Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc., and Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America Inc. The lawsuit claims that the company failed to notify EPA and violated the Clean Air Act as announced by the U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The U.S. has filed a civil complaint along with a consent decree that will mandate Toyota to make a civil penalty payment of $180 million. It will be the largest penalty for violating EPA’s emission-reporting requirements. It will require the company to ensure timely investigation and reporting of emission-related defects to EPA and include training, communication, and oversight requirements. The court is yet to approve the consent decree.

Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division said that the settlement is a milestone for the administration as it highlights the importance of adhering to the environmental laws, including EPA’s regulations.

Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York said that Toyota has been violating regulations provided by EPA for a decade. He added that the company had been profit-oriented by turning a blind eye towards the Clean Air Act. It has continuously violated the EPA regulations by designing vehicles that emit excess air pollutants. He further stated that a $180 million civil penalty and agreement to injunctive relief is the perfect action against the company to prevent it from repeated violations.

Assistant Administrator of EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance said that Toyota repeatedly failed to inform them about potential defects in their cars to EPA and considers it as a serious violation of the Clean Air Act.

Another complaint filed in Manhattan federal court alleges that the company violated the Clean Air Act from approximately 2005 until at least late 2015.

The list of delayed filling from Toyota includes 78 EDIRs. It also failed to 20 VERRs and more than 200 quarterly reports.

The Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities (DPU) has approved a $56 million settlement that Columbia Gas of Massachusetts and its parent, NiSource, had agreed in July to pay over a series of explosions and fires in the state in 2018. The settlement approval news was announced by the state Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs.

The horrific incident happened on September 13, 2018, when excessive pressure in natural gas lines owned by Columbia Gas caused a series of explosions and fires. It occurred in as many as 40 homes, with over 80 individual fires, in the Merrimack Valley, Massachusetts, towns of Lawrence, Andover, and North Andover.

One person was killed, almost two dozen were injured, more than 100 buildings were damaged, and 30,000 were forced to evacuate their homes.

The incident resulted in multiple class action lawsuits against the company for negligence and destruction of property. The $56 million settlement amount will aid debt relief to low-income natural gas customers and fund clean energy and energy efficiency measures in older homes and buildings.

As a part of the settlement deal, Columbia Gas also requires to leave Massachusetts and transfer its assets to Eversource Energy. In separate actions, the company agreed to pay a $53 million federal fine, along with a $143 million settlement for the class-action lawsuits.
DPU Chairman Matthew Nelson said, “Our approval of this settlement ensures that Columbia Gas is held accountable for the tragic gas incident in the Merrimack Valley, and provides needed support to the impacted communities and low-income residents.”