The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) today announced that the owner and operator of Amphenol Aerospace, an electronics manufacturer in Delaware County, recently paid a civil penalty of $945,000 for violations related to the tampering of weekly sampling reports and submission of false materials to DEC over a two-year period.

Amphenol Corp. operates the Amphenol Aerospace plating facility at 40-60 Delaware Avenue in the village of Sidney, approximately one mile from its administrative and manufacturing facilities.

DEC began investigating Amphenol Aerospace in April 2022 after being notified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of an anonymous complaint the facility had modified sampling practices by removing nitric acid from wastewater, drumming it into 55-gallon drums, and returning it back into the wastewater treatment system after weekly samples of effluent from the outfall had been collected.

Acting on the tip, Environmental Conservation Police Officers and DEC Division of Water employees inspected the facility and interviewed facility workers. The investigation determined discrepancies in nitrogen levels reported by the facility from December 2020 to March 2022.

To resolve the 83 violations of the facility’s State Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit, DEC executed an Order on Consent with Amphenol Corp. In addition to paying the civil penalty, Amphenol Corp. has instituted procedures to avoid potential recurrences.