This consent decree concerns violations of the Clean Air Act (CAA) by Coltec Industries Inc., (Coltec) and National Steel and Shipbuilding Company (NASSCO). Coltec is a subsidiary of EnPro Industries Inc. and operates Fairbanks Morse Engine (FME), which supplies marine propulsion and ship service systems to the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard. NASSCO is a subsidiary of General Dynamics. NASSCO designs and builds support ships, oil tankers, and dry cargo carriers for the U.S. Navy and commercial markets.
Coltec, through its subsidiary FME, manufactured over a period of 4 years 32 marine engines which were not covered by certificates of conformity issued by EPA. NASSCO installed these engines (four per ship) as the main diesel generators on eight United States Navy T-AKE class vessels. NASSCO also installed a total of 6 marine diesel engines on three other vessels (including the the product tankers BP Alaskan Adventurer and Golden Gate ). These uncertified engines do not comply with applicable emissions standards, resulting in the emission of excess pollutants.
The CAA prohibits marine diesel engines from being sold in the U.S. unless the engines are covered by a certificate of conformity and have an EPA label indicating that the engine meets applicable emission standards. Engines that are not certified may be operating without proper emissions controls and emitting excess carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides. These excess emissions can cause respiratory illnesses,