Honeywell Pleads Guilty to Illegal Storage of Radioactive Waste

On March 11^th, Honeywell International Inc. was ordered to pay $11.8 million as a criminal fine after it plead guilty to one felony offense for knowingly storing hazardous waste without a permit. The punishment for their violation of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), was handed down from the federal district court in Benton, Illinois.

“The defendant’s illegal storage practices put employees at risk of exposure to radioactive and hazardous materials,” said Cynthia Giles, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “Today’s plea agreement and sentencing shows that those who try to circumvent the law and place people’s health and the environment at risk will be vigorously prosecuted.”

The company had potentially put the general public at risk by storing waste which contained radioactive materials without the proper permits. The regulations regarding the permits are designed to help ensure that all proper safeguards are in place and that materials are stored properly.

Honeywell has a license to possess and manage natural uranium and convert it into UF6 for nuclear fuel. As part of the process, a slurry of radioactive material referred to as “KOH mud”, which is a mix of uranium and potassium hydroxide, is created as a waste product. The company had a permit to store this material for 90 days, but regulators found 7500 barrels of the material which had been stored for years.

In addition to their fine, Honeywell is also serving a 5 year probation period. As part of that probation, Honeywell will spend about $200,000 to develop, fund, and implement a household hazardous waste collection program. Over the next two years, the program will coordinate a minimum of eight community events to collect waste and then arrange for proper treatment, transportation, and disposal of it.