§ 23-19.1-18 - Criminal penalties – Payment of restoration costs. - Rhode Island Statutes

SECTION 23-19.1-18

   § 23-19.1-18  Criminal penalties –Payment of restoration costs. – (a) Unless otherwise specified, any person who shall refuse to obey or whoshall knowingly violate, or reasonably should know that he or she is violating,the provisions of an order issued by the director under the provisions of thischapter or any rules or regulations promulgated pursuant to this chapter, orwho shall cause the refusal or violation, shall be guilty of a felony.

   (b) Any person who shall tamper with, destroy, or in anyother way detrimentally affect a well which has been installed by any personpursuant to an order or rules and regulations issued by the department ofenvironmental management or any other state agency, for the purpose of testingground water contamination, shall be guilty of a felony.

   (c) Disposal of hazardous wastes at landfills which cannot belocated, designed, constructed, or operated to prevent the endangerment of allunderground drinking water sources beyond the facility boundary; or theendangerment of an aquifer which has been designated by any federal or RhodeIsland state agency as a sole source aquifer; or contamination by discharge byany surface or subsurface means causing a violation of any rule or regulationor standard of any federal or Rhode Island agency; or disposal of hazardouswastes at facilities other than hazardous waste disposal facilities permittedby the department of environmental management is prohibited, and any person whoknowingly disposes, or who reasonably should know that he or she is disposingor causing the disposal of, hazardous wastes in Rhode Island at other thanhazardous waste disposal facilities holding valid permits issued by thedepartment of environmental management shall be deemed guilty of a felony.

   (d) Operation of a hazardous waste disposal facility in RhodeIsland without a valid permit issued by the department of environmentalmanagement is prohibited, and any person who knowingly operates a hazardouswaste disposal facility in Rhode Island, or who reasonably should know that heor she is operating or causing the operation of this facility without a validpermit shall be guilty of a felony.

   (e) Transportation of hazardous wastes in Rhode Islandwithout a valid permit issued by the department of environmental management isprohibited, and any person who knowingly transports hazardous wastes in RhodeIsland without a valid permit issued by the department of environmentalmanagement, or who reasonably should know that he or she is transporting orcausing to be transported hazardous wastes without a permit, shall be guilty ofa felony.

   (f) Treatment of hazardous wastes in Rhode Island without avalid permit issued by the department of environmental management, or storageof hazardous wastes in Rhode Island without a valid permit issued by thedepartment of environmental management is prohibited and any person whoknowingly stores or treats hazardous wastes in Rhode Island without a validpermit issued by the department of environmental management, or otherauthorization of the department of environmental management, or who reasonablyshould know that he or she is storing or treating or causing to be treated orstored without a permit, shall be guilty of a felony.

   (g) The transporting, causing to be transported, or acceptingof hazardous waste for treatment, storage, or disposal from a transporterwithout a manifest required by the department of environmental management andcompleted in accordance with department of environmental management regulationsis prohibited. Any person who transports, causes to be transported, or acceptshazardous waste for treatment, storage, or disposal and fails to prepare amanifest for the hazardous waste or knowingly alters or falsifies theinformation on the manifest shall be deemed guilty of a felony.

   (h) Any person who knowingly makes a false statement,representation, or certification in any application, record, report, plan,permit, or other document filed, maintained, and used for the purposes ofprogram compliance under this chapter shall be deemed guilty of a felony.

   (i) Any person who violates any provision of this sectionshall be punished by imprisonment for not more than five (5) years or by a fineof not more than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) or both. In the case ofa continuing violation, each day's continuance of the violation shall be aseparate and distinct offense.

   (j) In addition to the provisions of this section, after ajudgment of conviction and hearing in accordance with § 23-19.1-18.1, thecourt may order the defendant to pay the cost of restoring to its originalstate the area where hazardous wastes were unlawfully stored, treated, ordisposed.