A lawsuit accusing USA Wholesale Lubricant Inc. of importing restricted chemicals has stalled over questions of whether the United States Environmental Protection Agency properly informed the company of the government’s complaint.
The original enforcement action, filed a year ago, is the EPA’s first administrative complaint under the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act of 2020. The agency alleges that USA Wholesale Lubricant unlawfully attempted to import about 15,640 kilograms of HFC-134a, a hydrofluorocarbon with a global warming potential 1,430 times greater than carbon dioxide.
The EPA claims USA Wholesale Lubricant failed to submit required import documentation, and the shipment was denied entry into the U.S. and exported.
Earlier this year, the EPA filed a motion for default in the belief that USA Wholesale Lubricant had not responded to the complaint. The motion was denied because it appeared there was no evidence that the respondent had been served at all.
Since then, the court directed the EPA to file reports so that the situation could be monitored.
The EPA is seeking civil penalties and a ruling that USA Wholesale violated the AIM Act. The agency’s action is part of a broader enforcement initiative to prevent illegal imports of climate-damaging substances and ensure accurate emissions reporting under the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol.