Contact: Dan Olson, 218-846-8108
Detroit Lakes, Minn. ─ Homecrest Outdoor Living has taken corrective actions for violations of state air protection and reporting regulations. The actions stem from an investigation into operation of a spray booth at Innovative Surfaces, a Wadena company that Homecrest acquired in 2008. In addition to the corrective actions, Homecrest will pay a $13,000 civil penalty to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA).
MPCA investigators concluded that the company constructed and operated the paint booth prior to receiving the required air emissions permit. The MPCA investigation also found that Homecrest missed deadlines for submission of compliance information about the spray booth and failed to provide annual emission inventories for the period 2008-2010.
In addition to paying the civil penalty, the corrective actions Homecrest agreed to include submitting compliance status reports, semiannual compliance reports, and annual emission inventory reports for 2008 through 2010.
When calculating penalties, the MPCA takes into account how seriously the violation affected the environment, whether it is a first-time or repeat violation, and how promptly the violation was reported to appropriate authorities. It also attempts to recover the calculated economic benefit gained by failure to comply with environmental laws in a timely manner. For a comprehensive list of enforcement actions by the MPCA, refer to the agency’s Quarterly Summary of Enforcement Actions webpage.
