A lawsuit filed by Ventura County in conjunction with seven other agencies over environmental law violations related to cell phone towers has led to a multi-million-dollar settlement.
Prosecutors said Verizon Wireless failed to properly report the use of petroleum products, as well as batteries used for backup power at some of its tower sites.
They said in some cases, the company failed to allow site inspections and didn’t adequately train employees on how to deal with hazardous material accidents at the site. There was no evidence of environmental harm at the cell phone sites.
The judgment calls for Verizon to pay $7.7 million in fines and investigative costs. The Ventura County District Attorney’s Office will receive more than $820,000 for its role in the case.
