Wednesday, June 24, 2020

Pacific Seafood-Westport Settles with EPA

The US Environmental Protection Agency has reached a settlement with Pacific Seafood-Westport, LLC, over violations of the federal Clean Water Act at its Westport, Washington, crab and shrimp processing facility.

Settlement documents note that the EPA identified more than 2,100 violations of the Westport facility’s wastewater discharge permit during an unannounced inspection in 2017. The federal agency documented discharge limit violations, as well as violations related to monitoring frequency, incorrect sampling and incomplete or inadequate reporting.

There’s a reason for these wastewater discharge permit limits,” said Lauris Davies, acting director of EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance assurance in Seattle. “Local receiving waters can get inundated with body parts, entails, shell particles, oil and other byproducts in volumes they just can’t handle. When discharges exceed permit requirements, companies must take swift action to comply with legal limits, or face penalties.” Pacific Seafood has agreed to pay a penalty of $190,000, and to initiate new programs and implemented technologies to address compliance issues at the Westport facility. EPA officials said as a direct result of the enforcement action they expect to see a significant reduction in fecal coliform, biochemical oxygen demand, total suspended solids and oil and grease discharge at the facility.

Also as part of the agreement Pacific Seafood neither confirms or denies the allegations contained in the signed consent agreement and final order, the EPA said.

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