The EPA reached a $1 million settlement with Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc., a builder of residential homes throughout the U.S., for Clean Water Act violations at 591 construction sites in 18 different states and the District of Columbia. The Clean Water Act violations involved Hovnanian's failure to comply with storm water run-off requirements, including failure to obtain permits until after construction began or failing to obtain permits at all. At sites where permits had been obtained, Hovnanian's violations included failure to prevent or minimize the discharge of pollutants (such as silt and debris in storm water runoff). In addition to payment of the monetary settlement, Hovnanian must also develop improved pollution prevention plans for each construction site, conduct additional site inspections, properly train managers and contractors, designate trained staff for each site, implement a management and internal reporting system, and submit annual reports to the EPA.
The Clean Water Act requires that construction sites implement site controls to keep pollutants from being discharged into nearby waterways during storm events. Site controls include things like placement of silt fences, utilization of site grading techniques, and the construction of sediment basins and rock dams. Improving Clean Water Act compliance at construction sites is one of EPA's national enforcement priorities. Similar consent decrees have been reached with other national and regional home building companies.