Posted at 10:05 a.m., Thursday, March 15, 2007
Hamakua Energy settles with EPA on violations
Advertiser Staff
Hamakua Energy Partners, an independent power producer on the Big Island, will pay for an energy conservation project at a local school and pay fines as part of a settlement of federal air quality violations, the Environmental Protection Agency announced today.The company had failed to meet state and federal clean air permit requirements for emission limits and monitoring at its power plant in Haina, but now is in compliance, said EPA spokesman Dean Higuchi.
Hamakua Energy will spend $124,165 to buy and install a 10-kilowatt direct current photovoltaic system to generate electricity at Honoka'a High and Intermediate School. The system and electricity generated will be donated by the company to the school to use or sell back to the electric company.
"The project will reduce air pollution on the Big Island by cutting demand for electricity from power plants," said Deborah Jordan, director of the EPA's Pacific Southwest Region air division.
The company, which owns a power plant nearby, will also pay $34,335 in fines. Higuchi said the company was cited for exceeding nitrogen oxide limits and for failing to monitor for carbon monoxide.
