Portland manufacturer pays $37K to settle EPA complaint
Nichols Portland LLC, a manufacturer of metal gears and industrial components, will pay a $37,000 federal penalty for failing to report hazardous chemical use when required, the Environmental Protection Agency said Thursday.
Nichols was required to file Toxic Release Inventory reports for its processing of copper and nickel by the company’s plant at 2400 Congress St., Portland. Reports for 2018 were due July 1, 2019. But Nichols submitted them 10 months late, after being contacted by the EPA, according to a news release.
The 200,000-square-foot facility uses powdered metals to manufacture small parts and pump components. It was one of four New England facilities that were recently penalized in EPA enforcement activities.
“To inform the public and protect communities, EPA requires companies and organizations that produce, manage or store certain chemicals to report this information every year. Complying with this reporting is an essential part of protecting peoples’ health and for emergency preparedness,” said EPA New England Acting Regional Administrator Deborah Szaro in the release.
Attempts to obtain comment from Nichols Portland on the penalty were not immediately successful.
Nearly a century old, Nichols was the world’s first manufacturer of gerotors, which are complex sets of gears moved via fluid power. The company is the largest maker of gerotors for the automotive industry and employs over 300 people.
In 2016, Nichols was purchased for an undisclosed amount by Altus Capital Partners of Wilton, Conn., and other investors.
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