Cement Plant near Mojave to Pay EPA Fine

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The 58-year-old plant employs 130 people and is one of the largest businesses in the unincorporated community of about 4,000 people best known as home to the Mojave Air and Space Port, a campus of more than 60 companies engaged in aerospace development, manufacturing and flight testing.

The EPA investigation revealed that CalPortland made significant modifications at the plant that increased emissions of nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide and carbon monoxide without first obtaining a pre-construction permit and installing pollution control equipment required by the Clean Air Act. The company also failed to submit accurate and complete permit applications, the EPA said.

The settlement ensures that the proper equipment will be installed to reduce annual pollution by at least 1,200 tons of nitrogen oxide and 360 tons of sulfur dioxide, said Ignacio S. Moreno, assistant attorney general for the environmental and natural resources division of the Department of Justice.

The plant, about 95 miles northeast of Los Angeles in Kern County, now emits about 3,200 tons of nitrogen oxides and 1,200 tons of sulfur dioxide per year, the EPA said. Nitrogen oxides are linked to health problems, visual impairment and asthma. Sulfur dioxide, in high concentrations, can affect breathing and aggravate existing respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. CalPortland has one year to install and operate emission controls for nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide, the EPA said.