LOS ANGELES (Legal Newsline) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced Aug. 24 that Ricoh Electronics Inc. has agreed to settle allegations of inaccurate reporting on chemical substances by paying a $245,900 penalty and changing its business practices.
According to the EPA, Ricoh filed a timely but inaccurate report in 2012 about the total annual volume of three chemical substances imported in 2011 at its Tustin facility and one chemical substance at its Santa Ana facility. The company purportedly made another error in 2015, this time failing to record the amount of 10 chemical substances imported to its Lawrenceville, Georgia, facility.
The EPA noted Ricoh has since taken steps to voluntarily develop platforms to correct previous errors and prevent similar ones in the future.
“EPA’s data-reporting requirements are essential to protecting communities and the environment,” said Alexis Strauss, EPA’s acting regional administrator for the Pacific Southwest. “This data helps communities build a better understanding of risks posed by chemicals used in U.S. commerce.”
Ricoh Electronic is a subsidiary of Ricoh Company Ltd., a company based in Japan. The electronics division manufacturers electronic products that include printers, copiers and toners.