Contact: Esther Bowring, 240-777-6530
Dave Rotolone, 240-777-7753 or Jared Littmann, 240-777-6796
For Immediate Release: April 16, 2002

County Assesses $42,000 in Fines for Pollution and Other Violations Against Owner of Germantown Property

At a pre-trial conference today, Montgomery County reached a settlement with Vernon E. Martens and agreed to a Consent Order of Abatement requiring Martens to clean up his property in Germantown by mid-July and pay $42,300 in fines and court costs for 260 citations.

"I hope today's settlement sends a strong message to other polluters that Montgomery County will not tolerate violators who are damaging the environment," said Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan. "With Earth Day approaching, it is fitting that our inspectors and attorneys have once again demonstrated how aggressively the County will bring to justice those who break the law."

The most serious violation concerned a misused underground drainage pit, while other violations addressed discharges of air emissions and odors, open burning, discharge of pollutants, improper storage and handling of pollutants, lack of use and occupancy permits, violations of fire code standards, hazardous waste handling and storage violations, underground storage tank violations, and solid waste violations.

On June 27, 2001, County agencies conducted an on-site investigation of environmental, housing, and fire code violations on the 62-acre property located at 19430 Waters Road, Germantown owned by Vernon E. Martens and Vernon E. Martens, Jr., Trustees of the Martens Family Trust Agreement. Vernon E. Martens is a resident of Virginia. Martens is required to work with the Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection and Maryland Department of the Environment throughout the clean-up process to ensure Martens' compliance. Martens must give County and State inspectors access to the property through July 2004 to evaluate the clean-up progress.