Date

Thursday, August 25, 2016

Today, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District announced that Value Plumbing Co., Inc., of Oakley, California, has agreed to pay $310,000 in a settlement filed with the Superior Court of the State of California in the County of Contra Costa for installing uncertified residential water heaters in the Bay Area.

Spare the Air Status

A complaint jointly filed by the Air District and the Contra Costa County District Attorney Mark Peterson alleges that the plumbing contractor purchased uncertified residential water heaters and installed them in hundreds of Bay Area homes, in violations of air quality regulations and unfair competition laws.

Water heaters sold or installed within the Bay Area are required to meet very stringent nitrogen oxide limits. Nitrogen oxides when combined with sun and heat convert into smog. Although these water heaters are not compliant in the Bay Area, there is no risk to residents who may have them in their homes. The Air District rule requiring low NOx water heaters is one among many rules adopted to reduce the amount of smog forming compounds emitted into the air from stationary sources within the nine-county regional boundary.

The $310,000 settlement is comprised of $100,000 in civil penalties paid to the Air District and $100,000 paid to the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office, as well as $110,000 to fund clean air quality projects.

Value Plumbing Co., Inc., owns and operates a construction and plumbing company in Oakley, California.

The Bay Area Air Quality Management District is the regional agency responsible for protecting air quality in the nine-county Bay Area.

View the press release.

Last Updated: 8/25/2016