D.R. Horton has agreed to pay $203,420 to settle federal charges that it violated the Clean Water Act at two New Jersey developments.
Horton agreed to pay a $99,000 penalty to the EPA and another $104,420 to The Land Conservancy of New Jersey to help buy and preserve undeveloped forest and farmland near the Raritan River in Mount Olive, N.J.
During an October 2009 inspection of its Grande at Hanover construction site in Whippany, N.J., the EPA said it discovered the project had lacked necessary stormwater discharge permits since 2005 and that stormwater ran off the Hanover site into the Whippany River, “possibly polluting the river.”
The same month, the EPA also inspected Horton’s Grande at Springville construction site in Mount Laurel, N.J., and found Horton had also failed to obtain a permit for that site, perform required inspections of the site for eight months, and submit environmental compliance reports and certifications from 2005 to 2008.
In the wake of the inspections, Horton improved its stormwater management at the Hanover site and both sites were brought into compliance with federal stormwater regulations, the EPA said.
D.R. Horton's investor relations representative did not immediately return Builder’s request for comment Thursday.
Teresa Burney is a senior editor at Builder.
