This is a consolidated action pursuant to our Consolidated Rules of Practice (40 C.F.R. ?22.18(b)(2) and (3)), which provide that a proceeding may be simultaneously commenced and concluded by the issuance of a Consent Agreement and Final Order when the parties agree to settle one or more causes of action before the filing of an Administrative Complaint. We settled this case in this manner.
On May 14, 2002, duly designated representatives of the EPA conducted an inspection of and at Respondent's facility under Section 313 and 328 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA), 42 U.S.C. ??11023 and 11048 (hereinafter, the EPCRA Inspection ). As a result of the EPCRA inspection, and the review of documents submitted at and subsequent to the EPCRA inspection, EPA representatives determined that Respondent was required to submit Toxic Chemical Release Inventory Reporting Form R reports for chromium and cobalt for the calendar years 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2000 to the USEPA Administrator and to the State of New Jersey. These failures to submit the Form R reports in a timely manner constitute violations of Section 313 of EPCRA, 42 U.S.C. ?11023, and 40 C.F.R ?372.30.
The amount of the penalty was initially calculated using the Enforcement Response Policy (ERP) for Section 313 of EPCRA promulgated by the USEPA Office of Compliance Monitoring, Office of Pesticides and Toxic Substances, on August 10, 1992. A penalty of $158,400 would have been proposed if a