The Justice Department and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) lodged a proposed settlement agreement with medical equipment sterilizer Steri-Tech to resolve allegations that it violated the Clean Air Act.
Under the proposed settlement, Steri-Tech will pay a $700,000 civil penalty and destroy its emissions of ethylene oxide by 99.99%.
The Justice Department’s June 2025 complaint alleged that, since at least June 2019, Steri-Tech failed to comply with levels of ethylene oxide emission control required by federal regulations and its operating permit issued by Puerto Rico. The complaint alleged that Steri-Tech failed to properly operate its thermal oxidizer, a pollution control device designed to incinerate hazardous air pollutants. Since the complaint was filed, Steri-Tech, working under EPA oversight, has brought its operations into compliance with the law.
“This settlement illustrates the federal government’s commitment to protecting local communities from toxic air pollution through tough enforcement against companies that fail to comply with the law,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department’s Energy and Natural Resources Division (ENRD). “Steri-Tech’s commitment to implement control its emission of EtO supports President Trump’s effort to protect children from toxic air emissions and to make America healthy again.”
Ethylene oxide (EtO) is a listed hazardous air pollutant under the Clean Air Act and has been characterized as carcinogenic to humans by inhalation exposure. EtO is a flammable, colorless gas with a somewhat sweet odor when present at very high levels. EtO gas is used to sterilize medical and dental devices that cannot be sterilized using steam or radiation. Approximately 50% of sterile medical devices in the United States are treated with EtO — about 20 billion devices each year.
