Oregon Wood Treatment Plant Violated Hazardous Waste and Clean Air Regulations
The J.H. Baxter group of companies will pay $1.5 million in criminal fines after the president, George Baxter-Krause, pleaded guilty to violating hazardous waste and the Clean Air Act at its wood treatment plant in Eugene.
According to a news release by the Oregon U.S. Attorney General’s Office, J.H. Baxter & Co. Inc. and J.H. Baxter & Co., A California Limited Partnership (collectively J.H. Baxter) pleaded guilty to charges of illegally treating hazardous waste and knowingly violating pollution control regulations of the Clean Air Act.
Baxter-Krause (61) of Deschutes pleaded guilty to two counts of making false statements that violated the federal statute governing hazardous waste management, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).
Apart from the fine, Baxter-Krause faces up to two years in federal prison and three years of supervised release. Sentencing is scheduled on 25 April 22 before U.S. District Court Judge Michael J. McShane.
Hazardous Chemicals Used to Treat Wood
Court documents reveal that J.H. Baxter used hazardous chemicals to treat and preserve wood at its Eugene plant, and the wastewater from the processes was hazardous.
J.H. Baxter operated a legal wastewater treatment unit to treat and evaporate the waste, but for years, when there was too much water on site, company employees would transfer hazardous wastewater to a wood treatment retort to “boil it off,” reducing volume. The remaining waste from the retort would be labeled as hazardous and shipped offsite for disposal.
The company did not have a permit to treat hazardous waste in this manner, as required by RCRA. Additionally, J.H. Baxter’s facility was subject to certain Clean Air Act emission standards for hazardous air pollutants requiring it to minimize air pollution emissions. Instead, hazardous pollutants were discharged into the air after employees were instructed to open all vents on the retorts.
Company President Gave False Information to Oregon Inspectors
On two separate occasions, Baxter-Krause gave false information to Oregon inspectors about the practice of boiling off hazardous wastewater.
The case was investigated by the Environmental Crimes Task Force (ECTF) initiative in the District of Oregon which identifies, investigates, and prosecutes significant environmental, public lands, and wildlife crimes.
Protecting human health and safeguarding natural resources and wildlife is regulated by the ECTF that leverages federal, state, and local regulatory agencies and law enforcement to hold violators accountable.
If you witness an event that may lead to an immediate threat to human health or the environment, contact 9-1-1 and report incidents to the EPA’s Report a Violation website (https://echo.epa.gov/report-environmental-violations), or by calling the National Response Center at 1-800-424-8802.