Federal case exposed illegal dumping and sewer monitoring tampering at a wastewater facility.
Two former workers at a Nashville waste treatment company have admitted to illegally dumping untreated industrial waste into the city’s sewer system and covering it up by interfering with water testing equipment. David Ray Stark, the former plant manager for Allwaste Onsite LLC, operating as Onsite Environmental, entered a guilty plea for waste violations in federal court in Tennessee. Earlier this year, former plant supervisor Caleb Warren Randall also pleaded guilty. Federal prosecutors said both men took part in a plan to bypass the company’s waste treatment process during late 2022 and early 2023 when the facility accepted more waste than it could properly handle.
According to court records, untreated industrial waste and landfill liquid called leachate were sent directly into Nashville’s sewer system instead of going through the required cleaning process first. Investigators said the actions damaged parts of the city’s sewer infrastructure and created concerns about public health and water safety. Federal officials said the company and its supervisors also tried to avoid getting caught by authorities by interfering with a monitoring device placed at the facility by Nashville’s Department of Water and Sewerage Services. The equipment had been installed in January 2023 to test wastewater flowing from the plant into the sewer system.
Prosecutors stated that workers were instructed to remove a hose connected to the testing equipment and place it into a bucket filled with cleaner water instead of the actual wastewater leaving the plant. That allowed the samples collected by the city to appear much cleaner than what was truly being discharged into the sewer system.
Officials described the behavior as intentional and repeated. Adam Gustafson, principal deputy assistant attorney general for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, said the case shows federal officials are prepared to pursue criminal charges against companies and supervisors who are knowingly breaking environmental laws.
U.S. Attorney Braden H. Boucek for the Middle District of Tennessee also spoke about the case, saying illegal dumping that damages public sewer systems will not be accepted. He credited local Nashville officials along with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) investigators for working together during the investigation. EPA officials said the company’s actions went beyond permit violations because the facility allegedly accepted more industrial waste than it could safely process. Instead of slowing operations or reducing intake, investigators said untreated waste was sent directly into the sewer system while testing equipment was manipulated to hide the problem.
Last year, Onsite Environmental pleaded guilty and was ordered to pay a $512,000 criminal fine tied to the waste violations. Court records showed Nashville spent more than $80,000 on sewer repairs and maintenance connected to the discharges. The city later recovered those costs, along with nearly $300,000 in unpaid surcharges.
The federal Clean Water Act requires industries to properly treat harmful waste before sending wastewater into public sewer systems. When industrial waste is not properly treated, it can damage sewer pipes, interfere with treatment plants, and possibly affect nearby waterways. Environmental officials said pretreatment systems are meant to reduce those risks before wastewater leaves industrial facilities. Stark and Randall each face possible prison sentences of up to five years along with fines reaching $250,000. Randall is scheduled to be sentenced in August, then Stark a few weeks later.
Sources:
Former Nashville wastewater treatment plant employees plead guilty
Former TN wastewater managers plead guilty in illegal wastewater dumping case
Join the conversation!