Nevada state regulators have accused Elon Musk’s Boring Company of violating environmental regulations nearly 800 times in the last two years as it digs a sprawling tunnel network beneath Las Vegas for its Tesla-powered “people mover.”
ProPublica reports that the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP) has issued a cease-and-desist letter to The Boring Company, alleging repeated violations of a settlement agreement the company had entered into after being fined five years ago for discharging groundwater into storm drains without a permit. The September 22 letter, obtained by City Cast Las Vegas and ProPublica, documents nearly 100 new alleged violations of the agreement, which was intended to compel the company to comply with state water pollution laws.
Among the violations cited by state inspectors are starting to dig without approval, releasing untreated water onto city streets, spilling muck from trucks, and failing to hire an independent environmental manager to regularly inspect construction sites. In total, regulators counted 689 missed inspections along with 100 new violations.
Under the 2022 settlement agreement, the NDEP could have fined The Boring Company more than $3 million, with daily penalties allowed to be assessed. However, regulators reduced the total penalty to $242,800, exercising discretion in light of the “extraordinary number of violations.” For example, the agency chose to levy just a $10,000 penalty for each of the company’s 11 permits, despite the bulk of the potential fine being linked to the alleged missed inspections.
The Boring Company is disputing the violation letter, according to a state spokesperson. Payment of the penalty is not required until the dispute resolution process is complete. The NDEP reminded the company in the letter that it “reserves the right to direct TBC to cease and desist construction activities” under the agreement.
This is not the first time The Boring Company has faced allegations of violating regulations since it began construction of the Las Vegas Loop project in 2019. The project, which uses driver-operated Teslas to transport people through tunnels, has grown from an initial 0.8-mile route to a planned 68 miles of tunnels and 104 stations across the Las Vegas Valley. It is carried out in partnership with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA).
As a privately funded project that receives no federal money, the Loop is exempt from many governmental vetting and environmental analysis requirements. However, it must still obtain state permits to ensure waste does not contaminate the environment or local water sources. The company has previously been cited for permitting and water pollution violations in 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023.
Concerns have also been raised about worker safety on the project. Breitbart News reported that the company was fined more than $112,000 by Nevada’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration in late 2023 after workers complained of “ankle-deep” water in the tunnels, muck spills, and chemical burns from the waste material generated by the tunneling process. The Boring Company has contested these violations.
Read more at ProPublica here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship.
