MANATEE, Fla. — The Florida Department of Environmental Protection is suing the owner of the Piney Point site that sent 215 million gallons of contaminated water into Tampa Bay earlier this year.
The state agency, which announced the lawsuit late Thursday, alleges environmental negligence at the former phosphate processing plant. The legal complaint filed in Manatee County Circuit Court asks a judge to consider enforcement action against HRK Holdings, the owner of the Piney Point industrial site.
“This action enforces compliance with the state’s environmental laws and all of HRK’s existing authorizations, orders and agreements with the department. The department is seeking the maximum allowable penalties and recovery of costs and damages under existing laws and regulations,” FDEP Interim Secretary Shawn Hamilton said in a statement, labeling the lawsuit a “pivotal step” toward the site’s closure.
HRK did not respond to the Bradenton Herald’s request for comment on Friday.
The state environmental agency’s lawsuit makes a case against HRK maintaining sole operation of the property, arguing the owner failed to meet a February 2019 deadline to create a plan for removing hazardous materials from the site.
“HRK is incapable of operating the Facility in compliance with Florida’s environmental laws and the standards, permits, orders, agreements related to the management of the Property and Facility,” FDEP’s lawsuit says. “If HRK is allowed to continue operating the Facility and Property, irreparable harm is likely to occur.”
According to a press release, the lawsuit is also seeking to impose major fines on HRK for violating earlier agreements and the state’s pollution regulations. FDEP is seeking daily fines of $50,000 for missing the 2019 deadline and $15,000 for violating surface and groundwater standards and financial assurances that HRK made with the state.
Court records show that HRK, which is in the middle of bankruptcy proceedings, has struggled financially for several years. It’s unclear how the company will be able to cover the fines or repay the costs associated with the site cleanup. According to FDEP, the state has already spent nearly $46 million toward emergency site cleanup.
Moving forward, the state environmental agency asked a judge to appoint an independent third party to take control of the site. That manager would oversee day-to-day operations, with the goal of preventing future spills, getting rid of the contaminated water and permanently closing the site.
“The ultimate goal remains closure of the site once and for all. We are confident the court-appointed receivership requested through this complaint will pave the way to expediting this process,” Hamilton said in a statement.
In recent months, HRK has remained silent about the environmental disaster and the pending legal action. The company released a statement in April, pointing the finger at the state and blaming the state for ignoring the site owner’s calls for assistance.
“Unfortunately, while continuing to delay the approval, funding and implementation of any meaningful resolution to address these ongoing risks and problems, the authorities chose to turn away from all requests for help,” Tom Richards, an HRK spokesman, said at the time.
In March, site operators at Piney Point, which sits along the U.S. 41 highway just south of Manatee County’s boundary with Hillsborough, detected a leak in the bottom of a pond holding 480 million gallons of water. The leak escalated quickly, prompting Gov. Ron DeSantis to declare a state of emergency.
At the time, FDEP authorized the emergency release of 215 million gallons of contaminated water into Tampa Bay to prevent the entire pond from collapsing and causing a massive flood in the area. Since then, DeSantis and FDEP have vowed to shut down Piney Point.
FDEP has maintained oversight of the former phosphate processing plant for 20 years. The state first acquired the site after Piney Point’s former owners went bankrupt and abandoned the operation, leaving a huge mess behind.
The plant took in phosphate rock and put it through several machines that extract phosphorus, a key ingredient in fertilizer. The process leaves behind gypsum material, which is slightly radioactive and cannot legally be used for any purpose.
At Piney Point — and other phosphate processing plants in Florida — that gypsum is piled up to create enormous mounds called gypsum stacks. The stacks, which stand 80 feet tall, form the highest elevation point in all of Manatee County.
The gypsum stacks are covered with a thick plastic liner to prevent the gypsum from contaminating the surrounding area. On top of those stacks are massive ponds holding process water, which is left over from the phosphorus extraction operation. Process water is contaminated with nutrients and chemicals that must be cleaned before it can be released into local waterways.
In the months since the Piney Point leak, a disastrous red tide bloom has taken hold of Tampa Bay and surrounding waters. Scientists have said that the nutrients from the water that Piney Point spilled may have contributed to the harmful algae bloom.
HRK gained control of the site in 2006, striking a deal with Florida to buy the site and turn it into a profitable venture by leasing other parts of the Piney Point property to industrial users, such as warehouses and factories. According to contracts associated with the land sale, HRK took responsibility for the long-term maintenance of the site, including the safe closure of the gypsum stack system.
State officials have pledged to hold HRK accountable for the environmental disaster. Earlier this year, the head of FDEP announced that the agency planned to take legal action against the company.
As the lawsuit moves the court system, FDEP says HRK is still obligated to create a water management plan to ensure that the site does not release any more contaminated water. According to public records, the company is working with a third-party consultant group to determine the best method of closing the gypsum stacks.
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