CERTA co-owners charged with contaminating Connoquenessing Creek
The co-owners of Capital Environmental Risk Transfer Alliance (CERTA) and the business itself are being charged with several felonies after the men allegedly dumped hydraulic fluid on the floor of the former AK Steel Plant #2 building and contaminated Connoquenessing Creek in 2022, according to charges filed Friday.
Kris Alvin Bamberger, 52, of Santa Rosa Beach, Florida, and Jacob Alvin Bamberger, 62, of Cincinnati, Ohio, were charged Friday with felony unauthorized management of hazardous waste, felony discharging of industrial waste, felony discharging of pollutions, felony violation of rules to protect the water supply and several misdemeanor counts of unlawful conduct. The business is also facing the same charges.
According to a special agent from the state Attorney General’s office, the Department of Environmental Protections, the Butler County Emergency Management Agency and Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission responded to reports of an oily substance on the surface of the Connoquenessing Creek Sept. 8, 2022.
The Butler Eagle in September 2022, reported that an oil spill closed at least two Allegheny Aquatic Alliance canoe and kayak launches along the Connoquenessing Creek. Several “booms,” or lines stretched across the creek containing oil-absorbant pads, were placed in the area to absorb the oil.
“It was not hundreds of gallons, I can tell you that much, but it was more than a boat puts out while it’s on the lake,” said John Myers, owner of Professional Enterprises, who was responsible for the cleanup, in 2022.
According to the charging documents, an employee with the Fish & Boat Commission, told investigators in April 2023, that black and brown liquid with the smell and sheen of petroleum was spotted in Sullivan Run. That sheen was detected as far as 8.5 miles downstream, he said.
An employee with the DEP told the special agent in 2025 that he and another employee observed geese covered in the substance and large pools of the substance in Connoquenessing Creek.
The two employees followed Sullivan Run and found the source at the AK Steel Plant #2 at 312 Bantam Avenue. There, the two met with Kris and Jake Bamberger, the two co-owners of the property through CERTA.
The DEP employee told the special agent he spoke to Kris Bamberger, who told him they were pumping hydraulic fluid from a large storage tank into smaller totes. After pumping the fluid, Rodgers said the brothers attempted to remove the large tank, but its supply line ruptured and the remaining fluid began to leak.
The DEP employee told the agent that Kris Bamberger said they began to pump the fluid onto wooden blocks that used to be the floor of the building in hopes they would absorb the fluid.
Scott Hoffman of Butler County Emergency Management Agency was also interviewed in March 2025, where he told the special agent he ordered Kris Bamberger to stop and that Kris Bamberger admitted to dumping the fluid.
A person associated with Professional Enterprises Incorporated told the special agent he was instructed by the DEP to begin cleaning Connoquenessing Creek at its furthest contamination point. Cleanup was not complete until Dec. 29, 2022.
Myers, with Professional Enterprises, also told the special agent the Bambergers failed to notify him of a notice of violation issued to CERTA. When asked, the Bambergers, Myers told the special agent, said they did not think the notices were important.
An environmental protection specialist with the DEP Bureau of Investigations, told the special agent in September 2024 that Jake Bamberger told him that he and his brother made the decision but consulted with a CERTA partner involved in assessing environmental issues. The specialist recalled Jake Bamberger claiming the partner said it would be fine.
The specialist told the special agent that Jake Bamberger also told him he knew the wooden blocks were likely already contaminated. The specialist sampled the fluid from the totes and determined it to be a characteristic hazardous waste.
The specialist also told the special agent he spoke with the Green For Life general manager who told him that Kris Bamberger had contacted him in May 2022 regarding hydraulic fluid transport and disposal. After receiving proposed costs, the manager told Wells that Kris Bamberger complained about the price and he never heard back.
A preliminary hearing for both co-owners is yet to be scheduled.
