In Department of Environmental Protection v. Gentek Building Products, Inc., the Appellate Division affirmed NJDEP's decision to impose penalties upon Gentek for its violation of the carbon monoxide emission limit in its air permit. Gentek manufactures aluminum and steel siding and, as part of the manufacturing process, coats metal with a substance that contains volatile organic compounds. VOCs then are discharged into a catalytic incinerator and destroyed. An air permit limits the emissions of various pollutants from the incinerator, including carbon monoxide. During a five month period, Gentek had fifty-nine exceedances of the carbon monoxide limit in its air permit.
In upholding NJDEP's imposition of a fine for the carbon monoxide exceedances, the Appellate Division concluded that the Air Pollution Control Act is a strict liability statute, and that neither intent nor fault is a necessary element of a violation. It rejected Gentek's arguments that any fine was inappropriate because there was no finding that the carbon monoxide emissions caused any environmental harm, the releases came from unexpected circumstances, the emissions were a result of Gentek's effort to use a more environmentally-friendly coating substance, and Gentek achieved no economic gain as a result of the emissions. The court found that NJDEP had tried to be fair and consistent in imposing the fine, not "mechanical and inflexible," as asserted by Gentek. Department of Environmental Protection v. Gentek Building Products, Inc., Docket No. A-6118-97T2, decided October 21, 1999.
