Federal lawsuit filed against West Penn Power over Mingo Landfill
West Penn Power is being sued in U.S. District Court over allegations that the utility has allowed wastewater with excessive amounts of pollutants to seep into Peters Creek from the Mingo Landfill in Union Township.
The civil suit, filed Monday on behalf of the state’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), contends that wastewater discharged from the Mingo Landfill, as well as the Springdale Landfill in Frazier Township, Allegheny County, has contained amounts of the mineral boron beyond what is permitted.
According to the suit, West Penn Power exceeded its monthly boron effluent limitations at the Mingo Landfill on multiple occasions between May 2013 to last August. The limitations were set by its National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits. The landfill is associated with the retired, coal-fired Mitchell Power Station. The sedimentation pond associated with the landfill discharges its effluent to a swale that flows to Peters Creek.
The Springdale Landfill’s effluent flows into Riddle Run, a tributary of the Allegheny River. The suit alleges that the violations at that landfill took place several times between March 2013 to “at least” October 2021. The DEP and the EPS are asking that civil penalties of $37,500 per day for each violation that occurred between March 1, 2013, and Nov. 2, 2015, and $56,460 per day for each violation that happened after Nov. 2, 2015.
The violations are based on data reported by West Penn Power in monthly discharge monitoring reports. It’s believed that high levels of boron could be harmful to plants and aquatic life, and studies have found that high concentrations of boron in animals disrupted the male reproductive system and hindered fetal development.
Todd Meyers, a spokesman for West Penn Power, said, “The Department of Justice will file in the near future a consent decree negotiated by all parties to settle the matter. The decree will detail West Penn Power’s position and the work to resolve the violations alleged in the complaint.”