April 15--The owners of the SugarHouse Casino have agreed to pay $650,000 to settle claims that their workers illegally dumped construction materials into the Delaware River near the Philadelphia casino, prosecutors said Monday.

Under the settlement, announced by U.S. Attorney Zane David Memeger, SugarHouse HSP Gaming will pay a $25,000 civil penalty and donate $625,000 to the Brandywine Conservancy, a nonprofit agency dedicated to protecting natural resources.

"This case reinforces our commitment to protecting the environment by ensuring that corporations either follow environmental laws or face serious sanctions," Memeger said in a statement.

Prosecutors said workers at the site of the Delaware Avenue casino were spotted dumping materials into the river on more than a dozen occasions in 2009 and 2010 without the proper permits to do so. The dumping continued after the casino operators received three cease-and-desist letters from the Army Corps of Engineers, Memeger's office said.

The casino opened in 2010.

In a statement, the casino operators said they regretted the actions of their contractors and subcontractors.

"Rather than litigate, we've agreed to enter into this settlement to resolve the matter," the statement said. "We support the mission of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to protect the environment and our waterways."

Neither prosecutors nor the casino identified the contractors involved in the dumping.

--

Contact John P. Martin at 215-925-2649, at [email protected], or @JPMartinInky on Twitter.

___

(c)2013 The Philadelphia Inquirer

Visit The Philadelphia Inquirer at www.philly.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services