Princeton, along with five other New Jersey colleges and universities, was recently issued hefty fines by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for improperly disposing hazardous waste. EPA spokeswoman Bonnie Bellow said wastewater, hazardous chemicals used in laboratories, pesticides and various fuels are often responsible for waste violations at schools.
Princeton was one of 10 schools in New York, New Jersey and Puerto Rico fined for sub-par waste disposal. Originally, the EPA levied a total fine of $2 million against all the schools, but the parties have since settled for $1.3 million, according to an EPA press release.
University spokeswoman Patty Allen said Princeton has worked with the EPA since the violation to fix the problem.
The EPA announced Wednesday that it is seeking $97,581 in fines from an eleventh school — Vassar College in upstate New York — for violating several requirements of federal and New York State hazardous waste regulations.
Vassar was fined for violations such as improper disposal of waste and chemicals and improperly marked containers.
Bellow said the University was fined because it elected not to take part in a 1999 EPA program through which schools monitor their own waste disposal and report problems or violations.
"The self-audit program gives university officials the chance to inspect their own campuses and determine possible violations," she said.
Assuming the violations are addressed and eliminated, Bellow said the school is excused from a monetary fine.
If schools decide not to self-audit — as was the case with the 11 fined institutions — the EPA is allowed to inspect the campus, and assign a fine that is proportionate to the violated rules, Bellow said.
To date the EPA has signed self-audit agreements with five colleges and universities in the region, the press release said.
"Universities are not the places you think of when you think of the term toxic waste, you think of factories and power plants; industrial settings," she said.
The EPA sent out 365 letters to schools in the region where Princeton is located, to explain the self-audit program, and to warn schools of possible EPA inspections and the risk of financial penalties.
The EPA also hosts free workshops to help universities follow the laws.
In addition to the University, New Jersey City University, Raritan Valley Community College, Kean College, the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, the Pratt Institute, Manhattan College, Columbia University, Long Island University's Brooklyn and C.W. Post campuses and Clarkson College were fined.
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