DEQ issues $343,800 penalty to Swan Island business for stormwater violations
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has issued a $343,800 civil penalty to Chris and Alice, LLC for violating the stormwater discharge permit for their facility located at 5555 N. Channel Ave., Building 2 in Portland, OR. The facility failed to implement the Tier II additional stormwater treatment measures required under their permit.
Of the civil penalty assessed by DEQ, $335,000 of the penalty represents the economic benefit gained by the company for failing to implement additional stormwater treatment measures. DEQ will consider recalculating the penalty if requirements are completed.
The owners and tenants at the Swan Island site have conducted source control work between 2011 and the present, resulting in a reduction in stormwater pollutants coming off of the site. Nevertheless, stormwater discharges from the facility continue to exceed statewide benchmarks for pollutant concentrations for copper and zinc, posing a risk to aquatic life and other beneficial uses of the Willamette River.
Chris and Alice, LLC has appealed the penalty and is in discussions with DEQ regarding the installation of required Tier II stormwater treatment measures.
View enforcement letter
https://www.oregon.gov/deq/nr/030117SwanIsland.pdf
Contacts
Christine Svetkovich, Water Quality Manager, Portland, 503-229-6991, svetkovich.christine@deq.state.or.us
Becka Puskas, Environmental Law Specialist, Portland, 503-229-5058, puskas.becka@deq.state.or.us