A New Jersey-based company pleaded guilty Friday in Bridgeport to a misdemeanor violation of the Clean Water Act after knowingly contaminating a Connecticut stream in 2019, leading to the killing of more than 150 fish, officials said.
National Water Main Cleaning Company, based in New Jersey and owned by Carylon Corporation based in Chicago, waived its right to sue and pleaded guilty Friday before U.S. District Judge Kari Dooley in Bridgeport to a misdemeanor Clean Water violation Act, according to the US court. United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut
The company reportedly released a pollutant into Cuff Brook while renovating a major culvert in Cheshire in July 2019, officials said. The unauthorized discharge of uncured geopolymer mortar killed more than 150 fish and polluted Cuff Brook.
Under the terms of the plea agreement, if accepted by the court, NWMCC will be on federal probation for three years and will be required to pay a federal fine of $500,000 and $500,000 to fund aquatic ecosystem improvement projects in the south-central Coastal Basin , as administered by the According to officials of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.
Court records show NWMCC submitted the lowest bid and contracted with the City of Cheshire to repair a rotting 12-foot culvert under Marion Road. Cheshire’s project specifications required the work to be carried out under dry conditions, along with environmental controls to prevent uncured geopolymer mortar from leaking into Cuff Brook.
According to court documents, NWMCC began employing a Cheshire Department of Public Works representative each day on July 15, 2019. However, from July 16 to July 18, NWMCC allegedly sprayed geopolymer mortar onto the culvert without required environmental controls. On July 17, 2019, NWMCC crews continued to work despite heavy rain, which resulted in uncured geopolymer mortar seeping into Cuff Brook.
On July 18, 2019, a Cheshire resident with property adjacent to Cuff Brook observed dead fish and discolored water with an oily sheen in the stream and smelled a chemical odor similar to lighter fluid, officials said. DEEP officials responded and determined that NWMCC was responsible for releasing pollutants that killed more than 150 fish and polluted the waterway.
The government’s investigation found that NWMCC was aware that environmental controls were inadequate but failed to correct those deficiencies during the project, officials said. Although the company attempted to blame pollutant emissions and fish kills on a single employee, the investigation found that he was inadequately trained, instructed to complete the job within an unrealistic time frame and never told that the -cured geopolymer mortar was dangerous to the environment. .
The investigation also found that NWMCC lacked a meaningful and comprehensive environmental training program for its employees, especially regarding the CWA, even though NWMCC’s core business is to repair and restore infrastructure that connects to public waterways. In addition, NWMCC’s bonus policy incentivized site supervisors and executives to push their work crews to complete projects quickly and maximize the number of tasks completed.
“Any company operating in Connecticut that ignores environmental laws does so at its own peril,” said U.S. Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery. “By prioritizing the bottom line over environmental compliance, NWMCC allowed a hazardous substance to escape into Cuff Brook, causing a fish kill and contaminating a public water body. This prosecution under the Clean Water Act reminds us that a for-profit approach to environmental protection will not go unpunished in Connecticut. We thank the EPA for its invaluable work in protecting the environmental integrity of Connecticut’s waterways.”
The sentencing is scheduled for February 27, officials said.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Criminal Investigation Division with the assistance of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and the Connecticut Office of the Attorney General.
Stephen Underwood can be reached at sunderwood@courant.com.