With Longview plant offline, Nippon shifts production plans
Nippon Paper Group plans to source its base paper from suppliers across two continents and will use its production plants in Japan to mitigate business impacts from the Longview plant's catastrophic tank collapse.
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The Japanese multinational paper company stated late last week that it would move forward with alternative plans across its supply chain in response to the May 26 chemical tank rupture at Nippon Dynawave Packaging in Longview.
The goal, according to a June 12 Nippon Paper Group press release, is to "secure stable procurement" for its base paper for paper packaging, and to ensure it fulfills all "supply obligations to its customers."
When reached for comment Monday, Nippon Dynawave Packaging spokesman Sam Jefferies said in an email that the Longview plant is shipping finished products made before the chemical tank's collapse. They include packaging for school lunch programs along with finished pulp products from an extrusion plant in a separate part of the facility.
No timeline has been given yet for a full resumption of operations at the Longview plant. Jefferies included in his emailed statement: "Safety is fully integrated into our ongoing approach."
In another statement Wednesday, Jefferies said Nippon Dynawave is "focused on supporting the ongoing remediation and investigations currently underway in Longview."
"As needed, we'll support our customers who depend on reliable supply of finished product, steam and pulp with temporary solutions," it adds.
The company previously stated in a June 5 update that the tank collapse forced it to suspend production.
Shortly after 7 a.m. on May 26, a 900,000-gallon tank collapsed at the site for reasons still under investigation. At the time of collapse, Nippon Dynawave estimates somewhere between 550,000 and 570,000 gallons of highly caustic papermaking liquid known as white liquor spilled, ultimately killing 11 people and sending numerous others to the hospital.
The latest company notice describes plans to procure base paper from suppliers in North America and northern Europe "to ensure that there will be no impact arising from this incident."
Many impacts on the environment and the company's finances are still being assessed. No damage has been confirmed for the bulk of its major equipment, apart from the failed tank, including paper pulp production machinery, boilers, extruders and paper machines.
The Department of Ecology describes removing the collapsed tank as a "long-term step" that involves investigative agencies, including the U.S. Chemical Safety Board and the Department of Labor and Industries.
'Interconnected supply chain'
Association of Western Pulp and Paperworkers Union spokesman Josh Estes said in an email that the company needs to keep operations going while the facility is down so it can continue serving its customers and maintaining business relationships.
He said this can help the Longview mill resume production when it's safe to do so.
Estes described the forest products industry as an "interconnected supply chain," and said that it's important for the longterm health of the industry to maintain relationships with customers, suppliers and other manufacturers downstream.
The majority of Longview workers are still idled.
The company has previously stated that it would pay idled workers their full salaries through at least Aug. 8.
After the spill, some equipment couldn't simply be turned off at the site; it had to be shut down in an orderly, safe way. Estes said some employees worked until noon on the day of the spill to ensure such work was done.
The Department of Ecology reports the site of the tank rupture was 23% clean as of June 10.
As cleanup continues, the union is focused on "supporting affected workers and families, ensuring a thorough investigation and helping secure the long-term future of family-wage jobs at the Longview facility," Estes said.
Injured workers
Association of Western Pulp and Paperworkers Union spokesman Josh Estes said the list of injured workers can fluctuate depending on the agency reporting, so he asked anyone impacted by the spill to email LongviewImpactedWorkers@awppw.org so the union can receive information directly from workers.
Effects on Weyerhaeuser
The Longview plant manufactures laminated paperboard used to make liquid packaging such as milk cartons and paper cups. It has been in operation since 1953, The Daily News archives show, and was owned by Weyerhaeuser until 2016.
Its roots as a Weyerhaeuser facility mean that the plant at 3401 Industrial Way pipes in raw pulp to neighboring facilities such as the North Pacific Paper Company, better known as NORPAC, along with wastewater treatment for a Weyerhaeuser lumber plant, NORPAC and several other industrial businesses, according to the state Department of Ecology.
Weyerhaeuser Public Affairs Manager Mary Catherine McAleer told The Daily News in an email last week that the company's "main concern continues to be for the community and everyone impacted by this tragedy, including our employees who lost friends and family members."
"From a production standpoint, we are experiencing no ongoing issues at this time, and we are working with businesses across the Longview site to ensure operational continuity," McAleer added.
Editor's note: The Daily News Local News Editor Hayley Day contributed to this report. This story has been updated from an earlier version to clarify attribution in statements from Nippon.
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This story was originally published June 18, 2026 at 4:31 AM.