Klaus Genssler v. Harris County, Texas and the State of Texas Acting by and Through the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, a Necessary and Indispensable Party

CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedOctober 7, 2010
Docket01-10-00593-CV
StatusPublished

This text of Klaus Genssler v. Harris County, Texas and the State of Texas Acting by and Through the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, a Necessary and Indispensable Party (Klaus Genssler v. Harris County, Texas and the State of Texas Acting by and Through the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, a Necessary and Indispensable Party) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

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Klaus Genssler v. Harris County, Texas and the State of Texas Acting by and Through the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, a Necessary and Indispensable Party, (Tex. Ct. App. 2010).

Opinion

Opinion issued October 7, 2010

In The

Court of Appeals

For The

First District of Texas

———————————

NO. 01-10-00593-CV

Klaus Genssler, U.S. Oil Recovery, L.P., MCC REcycling, L.L.P., Genssler Environmental Holdings, L.L.C., and U.S. Oil RecoverY, LLP, Appellants

V.

Harris County and the State of Texas, Appellees

On Appeal from the 125th District Court

Harris County, Texas

Trial Court Case No. 2009-32636

O P I N I O N

          In this interlocutory appeal, appellants, Klaus Genssler, U.S. Oil Recovery, L.P., MCC Recycling, L.L.P., Genssler Environmental Holdings, L.L.C., and U.S. Oil Recovery, LLP, challenge the trial court’s order appointing a receiver.[1]  Harris County and the State, acting through the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, brought suit against the appellants for environmental violations on the real property located at 200 and 400 North Richey, Pasadena, in Harris County.  After evidentiary hearings, the trial court issued a temporary injunction against appellants requiring appellants to take measures to begin removing hazardous material and prevent further hazardous materials, wastewater, or sewage from discharging from the property.  Asserting that appellants had failed to take any remedial measures and that the property posed an immediate risk of harm to the public, Harris County sought and received the appointment of a receiver who was charged with remediating the hazardous conditions on the property.  The receiver was authorized to seize and sell assets belonging to the appellants to pay for the cost of remediation and of the receivership.  We affirm in part and reverse and remand in part.

Background

          U.S. Oil Recovery L.P. (“U.S. Oil”) operates a wastewater facility at 400 North Richey, in Pasadena, Texas.  MCC Recycling, LLP, operates a wastewater facility at 200 North Richey.  Genssler Environmental Holdings, L.L.C., and U.S. Oil Recovery, LLP are related entities that own the real and personal property used by the wastewater facilities.  We refer to these entities collectively as “the U.S. Oil Recovery parties.”  Genssler is in charge of some or all of these entities.

          Because facilities of this type can create significant environmental hazards, the operation of the facilities must be conducted in compliance with state and federal environmental laws.   Harris County filed this suit alleging that wastewater from the 200 North Richey facility had been discharged into Vince Bayou in violation of Texas Water Code section 26.121(a).  On June 8, 2009, the trial court signed a temporary injunction prohibiting unauthorized discharges from the sites at 200 North Richey and 400 North Richey and requiring the removal and disposal of hazardous waste from those sites.  Because of continuing violations at the facilities through the course of this suit, Harris County amended its petition nine times and sought further injunctive relief.

          The trial court conducted a temporary injunction hearing on March 8, 2010. Gary Fogerty of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality testified concerning evidence of releases of wastewater that he had observed at the 200 North Richey location in May, June, and August 2009, as well as January 2010.  He further testified that U.S. Oil Recovery did not obtain required storm water discharge permits and did not have required concrete barriers to keep wastewater from running off-site.

          Mike Scanlon, president of Norex Engineering, testified that he was asked to evaluate the condition of the plant at 200 North Richey and also to look at 400 North Richey.  He saw fluid running down the side of some equipment. The fluid appeared as if it had flowed over the secondary containment onto the ground at the 400 North Richey facility.  Scanlon stated that the facility had leaks and did not meet the secondary containment requirements imposed by federal regulations to operate as an oil recycling facility.  He further testified that wastewater was leaking from the facilities and that such facilities are a danger to the health and safety of Harris County citizens.

          Jennifer Wheeler, the compliance services manager for Harris County Public Health and Environmental Services, testified that the U.S. Oil Recovery parties had been cited for approximately sixty violations since the granting of the June 8, 2009 temporary injunction.  Thirteen of the violations were for illegal wastewater discharges.  Thirty-four were for hazardous and solid waste violations, while nine were for nuisances.  She further testified that a half million gallons of wastewater from the facilities had entered the bayou.

          Robert Alan, manager of the Permits and Technical Services Section of the Environmental Public Health Division of Harris County Public Health and Environmental Services, testified that there was no authorization to store hazardous waste at the 400 North Richey facility.  However, hazardous waste—benzene—was stored in 205 roll-off boxes for longer than 90 days.  The estimated cost to remove the waste in the roll-off boxes was between 1 and 1.6 million dollars.

          On March 11, 2010, the trial court granted a second temporary injunction.  The court found that Harris County is likely to prevail at the trial on the merits of its various claims, including its claim that Genssler is the person in charge of the subject operations and has caused, suffered, allowed, or permitted violations of the law that have resulted in the conditions at 200 North Richey and 400 North Richey, Pasadena, Texas.  The court ordered Genssler and the U.S. Oil Recovery parties to remove and dispose of the hazardous waste within 60 days of the effective date of the order.  Genssler and the U.S. Oil Recovery parties did not appeal the temporary injunction.

         

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Klaus Genssler v. Harris County, Texas and the State of Texas Acting by and Through the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, a Necessary and Indispensable Party, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/klaus-genssler-v-harris-county-texas-and-the-state-of-texas-acting-by-and-texapp-2010.