By Sabela Ojea


Manufacturer and distributor of construction equipment Tadano has agreed to pay a $40 million U.S. Department of Justice civil penalty to resolve alleged clean air violations.

Tadano didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Between 2011 and 2017, the Japanese-based company allegedly sold 269 heavy, nonroad cranes with diesel engines not certified to applicable clean air emissions standards, the DOJ said Thursday.

Exposure to diesel exhaust is linked to serious health conditions such as asthma and other respiratory illnesses, the DOJ said.

Tadano will provide $3.2 million toward a project in Texas aimed at mitigating harm caused by excess nitrogen oxide and particulate matter emissions from its noncompliant crane engines, the department said.

"This settlement holds Tadano accountable for its violations and requires completion of a project that will improve the quality of life for those living in the Port Arthur, Texas, area," said Todd Kim, assistant attorney general of the Justice Department's environment and natural resources division.


Write to Sabela Ojea at sabela.ojea@wsj.com; @sabelaojeaguix


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

08-31-23 1346ET