Bermuda-based Bacardi this week deemed an order from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a ?technical issue? and insisted that treated waste water discharged from its rum plant in Canta?o, a suburb of San Juan, Puerto Rico, was not harming the ocean or environment.

Bacardi?s comments follow the EPA?s decision to issue an Administrative Order last week after repeat attempts to come to a resolution and in the interests of environmental protection under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) programme.

The EPA accuses Bacardi of contravening its permit by discharging polluted wastewater into the Atlantic Ocean. The treated wastewater currently being discharged into the ocean contains unacceptable levels of chemicals including lead, copper and zinc, the EPA said.

In a statement yesterday however, Angel Torres, president of Bacardi Corporation said that Bacardi ?remains in full compliance with Puerto Rican Water Quality Standards, as well as with the interim limits extended to us by the EPA.?

?The issue at hand is a technical one, regarding where wastewater measurement takes place. There is no environmental threat and no increase in regulated substances being discharged into the ocean,? he said adding that the company is continuing discussions with the EPA to find a permanent solution.

The EPA takes its measurements at the point where the wastewater leaves the plant which is the key problem according to Mr. Torres. Bacardi wants the measurements taken two miles away, at the point where the wastewater enters the Atlantic Ocean.

The company has in fact applied to the Puerto Rico Environmental Quailty Control Board to change the location of measurement, however that 2002 application has not received approval to date.

In the interim, Douglas McKenna, chief of water compliance for EPA Region 2 said that the monitoring point set out in the permit issued to Bacardi in March 2002 is appropriate for monitoring compliance with water quality standards and ensuring protection of the environment.

Bacardi?s description of the issue as a ?technical? matter however contrasts that of the EPA which, while declining to characterise the violations as major or minor this week, told this newspaper that this is not about a ?paper violations?.

?Bacardi has more than 1,500 days of violations of effluent limitations contained in its permit,? Mr. McKenna said. ?They are not in compliance. They are not meeting water quality standards as defined by the permit and its specifications. These are not paper violations. They are measurable discharges in excess of what the permit allows.?

Mr. McKenna said that the EPA shall be tracking Bacardi?s progress and take follow up action to ensure compliance with the Clean Water Act. If Bacardi does not make the necessary modifications to comply with its permit within 180 days, it could face stiff fines up to $37,500 per day it is out of compliance.