Fines issued for dumping in Flathead Lake

A local developer and Polson

construction company are being fined after dredged or fill material

was dumped in Flathead Lake near Lakeside.

The Environmental Protection Agency

announced Thursday, Dec. 9, that it had issued a complaint and

consent agreement with Lakeside Club developer Montana Eagle

Development, LLC, and McCrumb Construction & Marine, Inc., for

violations of the Clean Water Act.

The alleged violations took place when

McCrumb Construction was renovating the Lakeside Marina south of

Caroline Point in November 2007.

The marina is owned by Montana Eagle

Development.

Though the developer secured a permit

for the renovation project, neither company got the required permit

from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to deposit the material in

the Lake.

The EPA alleges that at least 400 cubic

feet of dredged material was discharged.

As part of a settlement, the companies

will pay a $15,000 penalty.

“The unauthorized actions of Montana

Eagle Development and its contractors led to localized impacts on

aquatic habitat and water quality in Flathead Lake,” said Art

Palomares, EPA’s regional water enforcement director, in a press

release. “The EPA will continue to pursue actions against those who

violate federal laws that protect Montana’s waters.”

An additional company, Dockmaster,

Inc., opted not to participate in the settlement, and the EPA

entered a separate complaint against it Oct. 28.

The EPA proposes Dockmaster pay a

separate $10,000 penalty.

Contracted by McCrumb for the work on

the Lakeside Marina, Dockmaster owned and operated the barge used

in the renovation, and the material was allegedly discharged under

its direction, according to the EPA.