EPA fines company $65K for pesticide danger near Columbia River south of Tri-Cities

The J.R. Simplot Co. will pay a penalty of $65,250 after the Environmental Protection Administration accused it of pesticide safety issues just south of the Columbia River.

The penalty covers problems cited by EPA at both its Umatilla, Ore., and Moreland, Idaho, facilities where large amounts of pesticide are stored and sold.

Simplot has a warehouse at 1013 Old River Road, Umatilla, about 1,000 feet from the Umatilla River about a mile upstream from where it enters the Columbia River.

EPA said the warehouse had a 12-inch hole in the floor for piping that could allow liquid pesticide that spills to contaminate the ground beneath the warehouse.

The warehouse held bulk quantities of the pesticides Gramoxone SL 2.0 and Vydate. The building served as secondary containment for two pesticide tanks, the largest with a capacity of 4,700 gallons, plus other large tanks that already had secondary containment.

Federal law requires that structures used for containment must have discharge outlets and gravity drains sealed to prevent pesticide from leaking from the structure and contaminating the environment.

“Pesticides facilities have a responsibility to ensure their products are safely stored so that the people working there and living nearby are not exposed to potentially dangerous chemicals,” said Ed Kowlaski, director of EPA Region 10’s Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Division.

The Idaho facility that was included in the settlement had pesticide spills that had solidified on the ground, creating a possible exposure for workers, according to EPA.

Simplot did not respond to a request for comment.