TAMPA, Fla. — A Tampa lead factory is facing $518,000 in additional fines following a two-month inspection by local environmental regulators prompted by a Tampa Bay Times investigation.
If finalized, the penalty against Gopher Resource would be the largest in the history of the Hillsborough County Environmental Protection Commission, said Sterlin Woodard, the lead investigator on the case.
County regulators began their wide-ranging inspection of Gopher in April after the Times’ investigation detailed dangerous working conditions inside the factory. The county’s probe confirmed many of the newsroom’s findings.
