US telecoms firm Verizon Wireless is set to pay $7.7 million to settle alleged violations of California’s environmental laws covering hazardous materials across hundreds of the firm's wireless cell tower sites.

According to local reports, San Bernardino County district attorney Jason Anderson said that the violations dated back to January. They included systemic failures in hazardous materials reporting, employee training, and regulatory access at Verizon-owned facilities across Southern California.

“Verizon’s failure to comply with laws that govern hazardous materials created avoidable risks,” Anderson said. “The investigation found consistent gaps in required reporting, employee training, and inspection access across hundreds of facilities. This judgment ensures accountability while strengthening transparency for first responders at thousands of cell towers and requires that Verizon maintain compliance going forward.”

The settlement focused on the telco’s use of lead-acid batteries and petroleum products, which included above-ground petroleum storage tanks that were used to power backup generation systems at the company’s cell sites.

Current California legislation dictates that companies storing hazardous materials above certain thresholds must submit accurate Hazardous Materials Business Plans (HMBPs) to the California Environmental Reporting System, maintain copies onsite, train employees, allow inspections, and pay permit fees supporting local oversight.

The complaint alleged that Verizon consistently failed to submit complete and accurate plans, did not maintain required documentation at the tower locations, did not provide employee training for hazardous material releases, denied access to the sites, and refused to pay the required permit fees.

The prosecuters affirm that while there was no evidence of environmental harm, the actions impacted public safety in hindering the capacity of emergency services and environmental regulators to access critical information during the emergencies.

“Companies that store hazardous materials have a legal obligation to protect the public, first responders, and the environment,” said Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman. “This settlement underscores that even the largest corporations must follow California’s environmental laws, and when they don’t, they will be held accountable.”

Verizon is the largest mobile services provider in the US market. However, it has been going through some turmoil of late, with its new CEO, Dan Schulman, calling for a "full reboot" at the carrier upon his appointment to the role. Since then, the company has announced plans to cut around 15,000 jobs, in an attempt to reduce costs amid increased competition for both wireless service and home Internet customers.