Staying compliant should not require a full-time regulatory expert on your payroll. A-Tech’s certified team handles the permits, plans, and reporting that keeps your facility in good standing with California and Washington agencies, so you can avoid violations, fines, and project delays.
Why This Can't Wait
- Inspections are not scheduled around your convenience. Being out of compliance at the moment of inspection already exposes you to a violation, regardless of intent
- A lapsed permit can halt operations until it is reinstated, which stops production or construction along with it.
- Facilities often answer to multiple agencies at once, such as SCAQMD, a CUPA, and the State Water Board, so a single compliance gap can trigger separate violations from separate agencies simultaneously.
Services We Cover
- Stormwater Compliance & Monitoring: Facilities and construction sites that discharge stormwater are regulated under the Clean Water Act’s NPDES program, administered in California by the State Water Resources Control Board and in Washington by the Department of Ecology. Ongoing monitoring and reporting keep your permit coverage active.
- Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans (SWPPP): A SWPPP is the site specific plan required under most stormwater permits. It documents the Best Management Practices your site uses to keep pollutants out of runoff, and it needs to hold up under inspection, not just exist on paper.
- Annual Emissions Reporting: Permitted facilities in air districts like South Coast AQMD and Bay Area AQMD must report emissions annually. Fees and enforcement scale with reported data, so accuracy matters as much as timeliness.
- Air Quality Permitting & Compliance Support: Certain equipment and operations require a permit before they can run legally, whether that is a new piece of equipment or a modification to an existing process. Requirements are set by regional air districts in California and by the Department of Ecology and local clean air authorities in Washington.
- Hazardous Waste Compliance: Generating, storing, or disposing of hazardous waste is governed federally by RCRA and locally by your county’s Certified Unified Program Agency (CUPA) in California, or by the Washington Department of Ecology. Recordkeeping, labeling, and training requirements are strict and frequently inspected.
- Waste Disposal Coordination: A-Tech coordinates with licensed haulers and disposal facilities and handles manifesting so your hazardous waste stream stays documented from generation to final disposal.
- Spill Prevention, Control & Countermeasure (SPCC) Plans: Facilities storing significant quantities of oil are required under 40 CFR Part 112 to maintain an SPCC Plan describing how a spill would be contained and reported.
- Hazardous Materials Business Plan (HMBP): Facilities storing hazardous materials above threshold quantities must file an HMBP through their local CUPA and keep it current as materials or quantities change.
What Noncompliance Actually Costs
Regulatory penalties in this space are real and they add up fast, often per day, per violation:
| Violation Type | Maximum Penalty | Legal Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Stormwater / Clean Water Act | Up to $27,378 per day, up to $342,218 maximum per violation | EPA administrative order, 40 CFR Part 19 |
| Hazardous Waste / RCRA | Up to $70,117 per day, per violation | EPA Civil Monetary Penalty Table, 40 CFR 19.4 |
| Air Quality, California | Up to $75,000 per day (individuals), up to $1,000,000 per day (corporations) | Cal. Health & Safety Code § 42400 et seq., via South Coast AQMD |
| Air Quality, Washington | Up to $10,000 per day, per violation | RCW 70A.15.3160 |
Reporting deadlines carry the same exposure. Missing an Annual Emissions Report or letting an HMBP lapse does not just risk a late fee, it puts you out of compliance the moment the deadline passes, which is exactly the condition these penalty schedules are built to enforce.
Sources: EPA Civil Monetary Penalty Table (40 CFR 19.4), South Coast AQMD enforcement guidance under California Health and Safety Code Section 42400, and Washington RCW 70A.15.3160.
How A-Tech Helps
A-Tech functions as your outsourced compliance team. We don’t fit clients into a one size fits all program. Every plan, permit, and reporting schedule is built around your facility’s actual operations and risk profile.
- Certified team tracking permits, deadlines, and renewal cycles on your behalf
- Direct experience with California and Washington regulatory agencies, from CUPAs to air districts to the State Water Board
- Access to EnviroShare, A-Tech’s proprietary client portal, so your reports and plans are always in one place
- Coordination with A-Tech’s Environmental Engineering and Health and Safety teams when a compliance issue points to a larger site condition
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Frequently Asked Questions
A SWPPP is a required plan for most sites that discharge stormwater, including construction sites and many industrial facilities. If your site has permit coverage under an NPDES stormwater permit, you need one.
HMBPs must be reviewed and recertified with your local CUPA on a regular cycle, typically annually, and updated any time your stored materials or quantities change.
New equipment, modified processes, or emissions increases can all trigger permitting requirements. The threshold depends on your air district and the specific equipment involved.
If your facility stores oil above the federal threshold quantities under 40 CFR Part 112, yes. A-Tech can evaluate your storage capacity to confirm.
You are considered out of compliance the day the deadline passes, which exposes you to the penalty schedules above regardless of whether the report is eventually filed late.
