LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The Boring Company has been fined nearly half a million dollars after disposing of drilling fluids and mud into the Clark County Water Reclamation District's Publicly Owned Treatment Works while working on the Vegas Loop.
According to a letter sent to The Boring Company on Oct. 28, this has been going on for months.
The Nevada Division of Environmental Protection received an anonymous complaint on Aug. 12. The complaint alleged that beginning on April 21, untreated water from The Boring Company-owned holding tanks was discharged to the District's facility off of Paradise Road and Flamingo Road.
On Aug. 13, inspectors conducted an on-site inspection and confirmed "an active illicit discharge of what appeared to be drilling fluids/spoils into the District POTW via two on-site cleanouts and two manholes." The letter states inspectors asked Boring Company staff to stop and they refused.
The next day, district inspectors went back to the site and again asked Boring Company staff to stop, which they agreed to temporarily. That's when district staff issued a formal Cease and Desist Notice to The Boring Company, advising the district was launching an investigation into the extent of the damage to their facility.
On Aug. 15, the letter states The Boring Company acknowledged the violations, confirmed they have stopped the discharges, and outlined corrective actions they should take.
District personnel continued monitoring that property and expanded inspections to other Boring Company drilling sites along Paradise Road. They found additional unauthorized discharges at Paradise Road and Thomas and Mack Drive.
Between the two properties, district staff removed and disposed of over 2,400 gallons of drilling mud, drilling spoils and miscellaneous solid waste. District inspectors also stated The Boring Company violated several federal laws and regulations.
The Boring Company has until Dec. 1 to pay the full amount to the district. If they don't, it will lead to a further violation.
This is not the first time The Boring Company has had issues while working on the Vegas Loop.
According to federal records, three OSHA investigations have been launched into the company's Nevada operations so far this year. We are working to learn the circumstances surrounding those investigations. We know a January investigation has been closed, while the other two cases are still open.
We do know that in September, Clark County firefighters responded to an industrial accident at one of The Boring Company's sites.
Last February, OSHA fined The Boring Company more than $112,000 for safety violations. Inspectors found that 15 to 20 workers were injured after a chemical mixture caused rashes and burns while they were working in the tunnel. Inspectors also found there was no personal protective equipment provided to protect workers from those chemicals.
The Boring Company contested all eight citations against OSHA.
APRIL 2024 l Workers allege chemical burns from Boring Company's underground tunnel
So far, Clark County Commissioners and Las Vegas City Council members have approved 68 miles of tunnels and 104 stations throughout the valley.
You can see the latest Boring Company map below.
Some have questioned whether county and city officials are doing enough to oversee and regulate the project.
Former Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman voiced concerns about the project during a July 2023 city council meeting.
"There was no city that would undertake this project for a variety of reasons. Las Vegas is the first place this is being undertaken. This is just me but having sat on the LVCVA board my entire term and researching this, I would hope it would work but there are so many issues that it's impractical," Goodman said. "It's operator-driven and is not on a rail and can't move as safely as we normally do. I find it's unsustainable. Tunnels are one-way in each direction and they're 12 feet wide. It a car gets a flat, it backs up all the way."
We have reached out to The Boring Company to see if they would like to comment on the matter. As of the time this article was published, we have not heard back.