Business Regulation

Introduction

Alumina Inc. recently has been accused of violating the Environmental Protection Agency’s regulations with regard to the discharge of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons above the acceptable limit. Alumina was found not to be in compliance five years ago for the first time in its history. The company needs to identify legal issues, regulatory compliance and a solution to aid the company in preventing future environmental issues while preserving the company’s current business interests.

Alumina Inc.: Key Facts, Regulation and Legal Issues

Alumina Inc. is a $4 billion aluminum maker and operates in 8 counties with 70% of the sale coming from the United States. Alumina’s business interests include; automotive components, manufacturing of packing materials, bauxite mining alumina refining and aluminum smelting (Business Regulation, 2002). Five years ago the Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) in test samples were found to be above the acceptable limit. Alumina violated the environmental discharge norms in a routine Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) compliance independent study. This was the only EPA violation to date for Alumina Inc. and violation was corrected to meet the EPA’s allowable standards for the discharge of PAH into the water. A local resident is considering legal action against Alumina stating the company repeatedly has released high levels of PAH into Lake Dira which has caused her daughter to have leukemia.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administers federal laws that concern pollution of the air and water, solid waste and toxic substance disposal, pesticide regulation and radiation (Reed, 2004). Alumina Inc. must comply with the Clean Water Act (CWA). This act establishes the basic structure for regulating discharges of pollutants into the waters of the United States (EPA, 2009). The CWA makes it unlawful to discharge pollutants from a point source into navigational waters, (rivers, lakes and...