Attorney General Nixon takes legal action against developers of subdivision near Hartsburg for erosion runoff

FROM THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

July 03, 2008

Columbia, Mo. - Attorney General Jay Nixon is seeking civil penalties and a court order because of erosion and sediment from a residential subdivision near Hartsburg that threatens to pollute a nearby stream. Nixon today filed a lawsuit in Boone County against Dana and Elizabeth Austin, the developers of the Ridge at Hart Creek, a 121-acre residential development site on Christian School Road.

The lawsuit alleges that the Austins and their business, Hart Creek Development, have been cited several times by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources since 2005 for failing to control erosion and sediment runoff from the site.

Nixon said the violations at the Ridge at Hart Creek appear to be ongoing. An inspection by the MDNR on June 26, 2008 confirmed that the defendants still have not come into compliance with either the Missouri Clean Water Law or the terms of the site's stormwater discharge permit.

Nixon is asking the Boone County Circuit Court to issue a finding that the defendants have repeatedly violated the Clean Water Law and the terms of their discharge permit; to issue an injunction requiring them to come into compliance with the law and their permit; and to pay a civil penalty and any and all appropriate costs and fees incurred by the State of Missouri in bringing the legal action.