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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Dec. 9, 1999
99-261
Contact: Joye Redfield-Wilder, public information manager, (509) 575-2610
YAKIMA - An Ellensburg man fined earlier this year for burning thousands of tires near Kittitas has agreed to pay $10,000 to settle his enforcement case with the Washington Department of Ecology.
Michael Alberg was issued a $15,500 penalty in January for an illegal fire that burned an estimated 6,000 automobile tires on his property in 1998. Ecology investigated the fire at the request of Kittitas County authorities.
As part of the settlement agreement, Alberg has paid $1,000 to Kittitas County Fire District #2 to compensate for its cost of responding to the fire. The balance of the fine will be paid to Ecology in $1,000 monthly payments.
"Tire fires are difficult to put out, and they can pose a health risk for fire responders and the public because of the toxic fumes they release," explained Donna Smith, an air-quality enforcement officer with Ecology. "This large settlement should get everyone's attention and act as a reminder that burning prohibited materials is a very serious violation."
Alberg had appealed the original penalty to the Pollution Control Hearings Board.
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
