HOT SPRINGS, Ark. — The Arkansas Midland Railroad will pay a penalty of more than $910,000 as part of a settlement over alleged hazardous waste violations, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced.
The EPA says the railroad stored more than 750,000 gallons of o-Chlorotoluene, a highly flammable and toxic material, in up to 34 unsecured and unsupervised railcars on a private track along Spring Street in Hot Springs for at least two years, near homes, a school, and waterways. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, the material has health impacts including causing liver and kidney injury, as well as irritation to the eyes, skin, and mucous membrane.
The state of Arkansas discovered the material as part of an investigation into another facility and referred the matter to the EPA. Under direction of the agency, the waste was removed and disposed of at an appropriate facility while settlement negotiations were ongoing. No evidence of leaks or exposure was found, the EPA says.
The railroad will pay a civil penalty of $910,985.
“Residents of Hot Springs or any community should not have to live with the threat of toxic material just steps from their homes and schools,” EPA Regional Administrator Dr. Earthea Nance said in a press release. “EPA and our partners are here to hold companies accountable when they fail to comply with the hazardous waste regulations that keep people and our natural resources safe from exposure and contamination.”
Arkansas Midland, acquired by Genesee & Wyoming in 2015, operates 140 miles of track in seven disconnected locations on former Union Pacific branch lines in central Arkansas.
