(Boston, Mass) A paint manufacturer in Chicopee, Mass. has agreed to pay a penalty of $153,917 to resolve claims by the US Environmental Protection Agency that it violated federal hazardous waste laws.In an agreement signed recently with EPA’s New England office, C & C Ventures, also known as Randolph Products, agreed to pay the penalty and to comply with the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).Last June, EPA filed a complaint against the company alleging violations of hazardous waste management laws. C&C Ventures manufactures a variety of paint products at its Chicopee, Mass. facility. Its violations included: failure to properly identify hazardous wastes; failure to properly label and store hazardous waste containers; and failure to train personnel who manage hazardous waste. Hazardous waste regulations under RCRA are designed to ensure that operating facilities manage hazardous wastes in an environmentally sound manner from “cradle to grave” in order to prevent releases that could pose risks to human health and the environment. Manufacturing facilities often generate hazardous wastes during production, and those wastes must be properly managed and disposed of. Since EPA’s discovery of the alleged violations at the Chicopee, Mass company, over 40,000 lbs of hazardous waste have been shipped off site to a licensed hazardous waste facility. In addition to paying a penalty totaling $153,917 for violations of RCRA, C&C Ventures has also worked to come into compliance so as to continue protecting human health and the environment in the future by:• properly determining whether or not wastes are hazardous;• properly labeling and storing hazardous waste containers;• providing hazardous waste training to employees; and• conducting weekly inspections of hazardous waste storage areas.More information: Enforcing hazardous waste laws in New England (http://www.epa.gov/region1/enforcement/waste/index.html)# # #