Today, Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD) agreed to the terms outlined in Georgia Environmental Protection Division’s December 18, 2019 Notice of Violation (NOV).  The NOV cited BD for operating its Global Distribution Center (GDC) without an air quality permit. 

     BD will take immediate steps to decrease the amount of product in the GDC including ceasing placing medical equipment that has been sterilized using ethylene oxide into the GDC from December 23, 2019 at 5PM through January 6, 2020 at midnight and removing certain products from the GDC.  BD will also conduct air monitoring at the nearest residential area and nearest school as well as weekly indoor air monitoring and outdoor fence line monitoring at the GDC.  This is in addition to EPD’s continued monitoring in the Covington area.  As requested by EPD, BD will submit additional information to EPD by 5PM on December 23, 2019.  This information will inform additional requirements to reduce emissions.  BD is required to submit a permit application for the GDC to EPD by February 3, 2020.

     Also, today BD informed EPD for the first time of a smaller BD warehouse located at 9120 Wheat Street, Covington, used to store sterilized medical equipment since May 2019.  As part of today’s agreement, BD will be conducting air monitoring at this warehouse before removing all product no later than December 23, 2019 at 5 PM.  Failure by BD to identify this facility and evaluate its emissions is a violation of the October 28, 2019 judicial consent order. 

     BD’s letter to EPD regarding the NOV as well as EPD’s response are posted on the EPD ethylene oxide webpage at https://epd.georgia.gov/ethylene-oxide-information under BD.  EPD will work to memorialize this plan in a proposed amendment to the October 28, 2019 judicial consent order, which will also address BD’s violation of the consent order by failing to disclose and monitor the second warehouse. 

 

News Media Contact: Kevin Chambers (404) 651-7970