On Aug. 20, Christopher Domermuth, 49, and Domermuth Environmental Services LLC (DES), based in Knoxville, Tennessee, both pleaded guilty to violating the Clean Water Act by knowingly discharging pollutants into a navigable waterway without a permit. Sentencing has been set for Dec. 12 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Knoxville.
Domermuth faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison, followed by a term of supervised release of up to one year. The parties have recommended to the Court that DES pay a $50,000 fine and be placed on probation for three years.
According to court documents, Domermuth operated DES, which was engaged in the business of processing petroleum-contaminated soil and water in Knoxville. On July 26, 2018, DES workers rolled over a previously exhumed underground storage tank, which spilled a mixture of petroleum and water onto a concrete pad at the facility. DES employees and Domermuth threw absorbent pads into the spilled mixture and then used a portable pump to pump the petroleum-contaminated mixture over a retaining wall at DES. The oily mixture flowed over a neighboring property and into a culvert leading to the Holston River.
“Domermuth Environmental Services and Christopher Domermuth were supposed to be cleaning up contaminated water and soil to protect the environment but instead caused the discharge of pollutants. These felony guilty pleas demonstrate our commitment to enforcing the Clean Water Act,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division.
“Our office is committed to protecting our natural resources in East Tennessee,” said U.S. Attorney Francis M. Hamilton III for the Eastern District of Tennessee. “I applaud the collaborative efforts of federal and state law enforcement agencies that brought these violators to justice.”
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division, EPA Office of Inspector General (OIG), Tennessee Valley Authority-OIG, FBI and Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation investigated the case.
Senior Trial Attorney Matthew T. Morris of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeremy S. Dykes for the Eastern District of Tennessee are prosecuting the case.