PCA penalized for 2017 Louisiana mill explosion

Illinois-based Packaging Corp. of America (PCA) has agreed to pay $2.5 million in civil penalties in a settlement negotiated with the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) concerning a 2017 explosion at PCA's containerboard mill in DeRidder, Louisiana.

The penalties involve what EPA calls allegations that PCA violated the Clean Air Act's General Duty Clause and Risk Management Program Regulations.

The explosion – which killed three workers and injured seven others – launched a 100,000-gallon storage tank into the air and over a six-story building before it landed on mill equipment approximately 400 feet away.

In addition to the loss of life and property damage, EPA says the event "released extremely hazardous substances into the environment." EPA says it inspected the DeRidder mill after the explosion and "uncovered additional Clean Air Act violations."

"This settlement both holds the Packaging Corporation of America accountable for failures that contributed to this accident and sends a clear message to corporations across the country on the importance of implementing appropriate chemical safety measures," says Larry Starfield, an acting assistant administrator for the EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance.

PCA announced it would be converting a newsprint paper machine line to containerboard production in 2014. At the time, PCA said it intended to use about 100,000 tons of virgin fiber to help reduce its dependence on the old corrugated containers (OCC) scrap paper grade. The company nonetheless consumes about 1 million tons of recovered paper at its mills, according to its sustainability report.