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GLOSTER – An environmental watchdog group says fines imposed earlier this month on the wood-pellet manufacturing facility in Gloster amount to little more than a “slap on the wrist.”

Renewable energy company Drax will pay $225,000 in penalties after reaching an agreement with the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) in connection with Notices of Violation (NOV) at its Gloster plant.

The NOVs were due to the alleged permit exceedance of hazardous air pollutant limits with respect to methanol and a failure to timely conduct an emissions performance test by a certain deadline. Drax officials said the company fully cooperated and took immediate action to investigate the alleged violations and provide MDEQ accurate information promptly upon its discovery.

As part of the settlement, Drax has agreed to pay MDEQ a civil penalty of $225,000, with $150,000 of that amount paid directly to MDEQ. The remaining $75,000 will go towards a Supplemental Environmental Project (SEP) to build a new dust suppression screen at the Gloster plant. Drax is voluntarily investing more than the SEP requirement with the total enhancement project estimated to cost $150,000.

“This is a slap on the wrist,” the Dogwood Alliance said in an joint statement with Greater Greener Gloster condemning the penalties. “Paying a fine and putting up a dust screen doesn’t solve the real problem. This pollution can cause dangerous health problems like cancer. People living near the plant need real protection.”

Dr. Krystal Martin, a Gloster resident who serves as Executive Director of Greater Greener Gloster, said she was disappointed in the MDEQ. “This fine does not justify the harm caused to our lives and property, nor does it support the mission of safeguarding the health, safety, and welfare of all Mississippians. This penalty should have been stiffer than the previous one because Drax is a known polluter with a history of violations in Gloster. This is an insult to the many residents who suffer daily from respiratory illnesses.”

Drax has operated the wood pellet facility in the 900-resident town of Gloster since 2016. Since its opening, residents have complained about the facility’s negative impact on air quality and the health of community residents, drawing the attention of national media reports. In 2020, the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) fined the company from Selby, U.K., $2.5 million for releasing more volatile organic compounds into the air than its permit allowed. In March 2023, the MDEQ issued another warning to Drax, noting that the company exceeded the legal limit of air pollutants allowed under its minor source polluter permit.