DEQ Issues Penalties, March 25

DEQ release – The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality issued 15 penalties totaling $1,443,639 in February for various environmental violations. A detailed list of violations and resulting penalties is at https://go.usa.gov/xEQJn. Fines ranged from $1,650 to $458,266. Alleged violations included a rubber producer operating without an air quality permit, a company discharging highly chlorinated water from a construction project, and cities not properly treating their wastewater. DEQ issued civil penalties to the following organizations along the Coast: City of Cannon Beach $1,650, Cannon Beach, wastewater; Knife River Corporation, $25,000, Coos Bay, water quality; Oregon Department of Transportation, $2,550, Hebo, stormwater. Organizations or individuals must either pay the fines or file an appeal within 20 days of receiving notice of the penalty. They may be able to offset a portion of a penalty by funding a supplemental environmental project that improves Oregon’s environment. Read more about these projects here: https://www.oregon.gov/deq/Regulations/Pages/SEP.aspx. Penalties may also include orders requiring specific tasks to prevent ongoing violations or additional environmental harm.