[ADEQ Media] ADEQ Director Owens Announces $175, 000 Penalty for Rinker Materials for Air Quality Violations in Gila, Pima and Yuma Counties

[media@lists.azdeq.gov]

ADEQ Director Owens Announces $175,000 Penalty for Rinker Materials for
Air Quality Violations in Gila, Pima and Yuma Counties

PHOENIX (Dec. 20, 2007) --Arizona Department of Environmental Quality
(ADEQ) Director Steve Owens today announced that United Metro Materials,
Inc. and Tanner Companies (Yuma), Inc., doing business as Rinker
Materials, will pay a $175,000 civil penalty for air quality violations
at five facilities in Gila, Pima and Yuma counties.  

Owens said that Rinker Materials has entered into a consent judgment
with ADEQ and is paying the penalty for more than 18 notices of
violation that have been issued to the company since 2001, including
failure to install air pollution control devices such as watering
systems.  

"Rinker Materials' failure to comply with the law put its workers and
the citizens of Arizona at risk," Director Owens said. "These were
serious violations of our air quality laws."
 
Rinker Materials manufactures asphalt, sand, gravel and concrete for
road paving, landscaping, and other construction projects at more than
60 facilities in Arizona.

At Rinker plants ADEQ inspectors found a lack of pollution controls
resulted in dust emissions of more than 50 per cent opacity, or smoke's
ability to limit visibility.  The EPA standard for opacity is 20 per
cent in nonattainment areas, or areas which have not yet achieved
federal standards for PM10 (particulate matter  10 microns or smaller). 

Many Rinker sites are located in PM10 nonattaiment or limited attainment
areas. 

In addition, some Rinker plants exceeded production limits. A plant in
Marana, north of Tucson in Pima County, produced more than 270 tons of
asphalt per hour, though the limit is 164 tons/hour. The plant exceeded
the limit for longer than six hours. The Marana facility also burned oil
at excessive temperatures, causing it to smoke.  

"The company also operated equipment without the proper permits and, in
many cases, exceeded what the permits allow," Owens said.  

-30-

News media interested in additional information on this or any other
topic concerning the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality should
contact the Office of Communications at (602) 771-2215 or via email at
communications@azdeq.gov.

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