  |
|
|
Department of Ecology News Release - July 19, 2010
10-171
OLYMPIA – The Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) has issued a $14,000 penalty to Emerald Services Inc. for failing to promptly and completely cleanup a December 2009 oil spill at its Lincoln Avenue facility in Tacoma.
Ecology says Emerald Services misrepresented its ability to respond to and clean up the spill. When Ecology spill responders checked on the site the following day, oil continued to flow from the spill area and spread in the rainfall. Oil was also found in an underground utility vault. Ecology had to require Emerald Services to order additional resources to complete the cleanup.
“The company should’ve been better prepared to handle this spill,” said Ecology spill responder John Hanson. “At minimum, Emerald’s staff could have put plastic sheeting over the spill area when the rain started to limit how much oil got into the soil. If they had, cleanup would have been easier and less expensive.”
Oil and petroleum products are toxic to people, wildlife and plants.
Emerald Services operates facilities in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Utah. It provides a variety of industrial services, including recycling and recovering solvents and automotive fluids such as oil and antifreeze; transporting hazardous and non-hazardous wastes; and cleanup operations involving vacuum trucks.
On Dec. 15, 2009, Emerald Services reported an oil spill from a rail car owned by a different company. The rail car had been loaded with used oil filters and oil for transport to a recycling center. A valve at the bottom of the rail car failed, allowing 40 to 60 gallons of used oil to leak to the ground.
Emerald Services notified Ecology, but characterized it as a small, contained spill that the company could quickly clean up. The company assured Ecology later in the day that cleanup efforts were going well.
Emerald Services halted the cleanup overnight, which allowed the oil to spread farther, impact a larger area of the ground and make its way into city of Tacoma utility vault. The rainfall and passing traffic helped spread the oil, too.
After arriving the next morning to check on the cleanup, Ecology staff directed Emerald Services to step up its efforts. The company didn’t have a trained supervisor on site who could order the additional resources and staff needed, so Ecology stayed on scene until an outside cleanup contractor arrived.
Ava Edmonson, section manager of Ecology’s Hazardous Waste and Toxics Reduction program, said, “This penalty is a clear reminder that preventing and responding to oil spills is very important. All companies who deal with hazardous materials on a daily basis must train their staff and have adequate resources on hand to respond to spill emergencies.”
Jerry Bartlett, Vice President at Emerald Services offered, "Emerald takes all spill actions seriously whether they were caused by us or someone else. We have intensified our efforts to respond quicker to such occurrences."
Ecology estimates that the company’s failure to act promptly cost the company over $73,000 in additional cleanup costs once the used oil spread to the underlying soil.
Emerald Services has 30 days to ask Ecology to file a formal appeal with the Pollution Control Hearings Board or pay the penalty.
###
Media Contact: Kim Schmanke, 360-407-6239 (desk)
How to report a spill: www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/spills/other/reportaspill.htm
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
