Port of Catoosa Business Agree To EPA Penalty And Fines

NewsOn6.com

PORT OF CATOOSA, Oklahoma -- One of the nation's largest producers of nitric acid and nitrogen fertilizers, Terra Industries has agreed to pay $625,000 in civil penalties to settle alleged violations of the federal Clean Air Act at nine of its plants including one at the Port of Catoosa.

In a news release from the EPA, Terra will also spend an estimated $17 million to install and implement new controls and technologies that are expected to reduce harmful nitrogen oxide emissions at its facilities by at least 1,200 tons per year.

"This agreement will require Terra Industries to make important improvements in pollution control technology at nine acid-producing facilities that will result in cleaner and healthier air for the benefit of communities in Iowa, Mississippi and Oklahoma," said Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division. "This is a notable achievement in our efforts, alongside the Environmental Protection Agency, to address the largest sources of harmful air pollution and bring about company-wide compliance with the Clean Air Act."

Terra will pay $100,000 to the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality. The Port of Catoosa is located on 650 acres at the beginning of the McClellan-Kerr Navigation Waterway System.

Terra Industries says on its website is one of the nation's largest UAN production facilities, producing more than 5,600 tons of 32% nitrogen product per day.