MSB Assemblyman Yundt to pay huge fines, make repairs for violating Clean Water Act

Matanuska-Susitna Borough (MSB) Assembly member and homebuilder Rob Yundt has agreed to pay a heavy fine handed down by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for multiple violations of the Clean Water Act (CWA) at two separate properties in Wasilla — one on Wasilla Lake, and another on Cottonwood Lake.

Yundt has agreed to pay the EPA $77,500 and make lakefront repairs as part of a settlement after a complaint was filed earlier this year. According to the complaint filed in April, Yundt — who owns Robert Yundt Homes, LLC— used heavy equipment to move gravel, soil, riprap, and other materials into Wasilla Lake at his private residence, allowing him to extend the backyard and install a dock. However, the complaint says he did this without receiving a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The complaint also states that he used equipment to “relocate and discharge gravel, native organic soil, woody debris, slash, and logs into wetlands adjacent to Cottonwood Lake.”

According to documents filed in the U.S. District Court for Alaska, Yundt, who represents Wasilla on the MSB Assembly, has agreed to pay the fine, remove the gravel and riprap, and add vegetation at both locations no later than Tuesday.

Robert Yundt Homes was originally fined $29,500 in June, 2022 by the EPA for violating the Clean Water Act between April, 2019 and August, 2020 when it is said that the debris was dumped into the Cottonwood Lake and Wasilla Lake properties documents. But when Yundt did not perform the fixes by an agreed-to date in July of last year, officials filed a second complaint.

The allegations stem from a violation of CWA, Section 301(a), which states that authorization is required for individuals to “discharge any pollutant into waters of the U.S.”

The CWA blocks pollution into any lakes and streams that connect to federally controlled waterways. Both Cottonwood and Wasilla lakes connect to Knik Arm, a federally controlled waterway, via Cottonwood Creek, which flows through the Palmer Hay Flats State Game Refuge.

Wasilla Lake and Cottonwood Lake are classified by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game as waters important for migrating fish, including spawning habitat for coho and sockeye salmon.

For his part, Yundt has said he works to protect the environment and doesn’t think he violated the CWA.

“I’ve done everything that I can to protect the environment,” Yundt said during assembly member comments at a July 18 MSB meeting.

“I don’t agree with the EPA - I never have, I never will. … I’ve never put any pollutants into lakes.”

“Violations of the Clean Water Act can significantly affect the lives of Alaskans, and those who partake in these unlawful actions will face consequences,” said U.S. Attorney S. Lane Tucker for the District of Alaska.

“The U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to support our partners across the nation to protect our communities and ecosystems from the effects of illegal environmental degradation, as in the case of Robert Yundt Homes, LLC.”

This is not the first time Yundt has faced scrutiny. Earlier this year, members of the public called for him, and several other MSB assembly members, to recuse themselves from the controversial gravel ordinance, although ultimately MSB Mayor Edna DeVries said there was no evidence of a conflict of interest.

Most recently, Yundt was co-sponsor to an ordinance that sought to change water setbacks from 75 feet to 25 feet no-construction buffer designed to keep pollution out of waterways, as long as builders received approval from the MSB Planning Department. It would have also grandfathered into compliance all previous violations of the setback rule.

“The intention is not to remove the … abatement plan, it is to give a path forward with enough steps to possibly go within 75 feet,” Yundt said during a June 20 MSB Assembly meeting. “I believe people who have not followed the ordinance or follow the law before should be given a path forward.”

The current riparian setback, dictated by Borough law, is designed to protect water quality and fish and wildlife habitat, according to a 1999 analysis produced for the Borough by an Anchorage-based firm. The report from Land Design North, titled “Matanuska-Susitna Borough Shoreland Setback: Analysis and Recommendation,” says that the intent of the setback is to protect water quality and, in turn, the fish and aquatic habitat, though it is not clearly defined.

The assembly opted to instead form a committee to make rule change recommendations. The Water Setback Advisory Board will hold its first meeting on November 1, at 6 p.m., in the MSB Employee Breakroom.