PA ILLEGAL DUMPING OF WASTEWATER LEADS TO GUILTY PLEA

PA ILLEGAL DUMPING OF WASTEWATER LEADS TO GUILTY PLEA

FOR RELEASE: FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 1996

ILLEGAL DUMPING OF WASTEWATER LEADS TO GUILTY PLEA FOR OWNER OF MISSOURI CORPORATION

On Sept. 3, William S. Happel, President of Gaelee Inc., of Leasburg, Mo., pleaded guilty in federal district court to one felony count of violating the Clean Water Act by using a backhoe to discharge wastewater into a tributary of the Little Bourbeuse River without a permit. The wastewater, which was contaminated with an iron-containing compound known as ferric sulfate, was impounded in two lagoons located on land in Leasburg which Happel had purchased in 1988 from the Fre-Don Co., a ferric sulfate manufacturer. After the purchase of the land, Gaelee continued to store the wastewater in the lagoons, even though it no longer manufactured ferric sulfate. On Jan. 17, 1995, Happel knowingly discharged the contaminated wastewater into a tributary of the Little Bourbeuse River. Ferric sulfate is toxic to fish and other aquatic life and can cause illness if ingested by humans. Happel faces a maximum of three years imprisonment and/or a fine of up to $50,000. The case was investigated by EPA's Criminal Investigation Division.

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