Oregon’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has fined plastics-to-oil company Agilyx for improper storage and labeling of hazardous waste. The company has requested a contested case hearing with the DEQ.
The fine, totaling $46,500, stems from a September 2014 visit to the 701 N. Hunt St. Wastech facility operated by Agilyx in Portland, Oregon. The site has been owned by Waste Management since the mid-1980s and began retooling it in 2011 as a waste-to-oil hub operated by Agilyx, Oregon DEQ records show.
Although Waste Management temporarily shuttered the operation in August of 2014, citing the need for more advanced technology to push along its waste-to-oil operation, a DEQ visit the following month identified several lingering infractions found at the closed plant.
Without a permit to store hazardous waste at the facility, Agilyx kept nine 250-gallon totes and 72 55-gallon drums-worth of various hazardous wastes on the premises, the DEQ notice alleges. Some containers were not properly labeled or closed and others were stored for more than 90 days, the DEQ states.
Given until April 2 to appeal the fine and related violations, Agilyx on March 30 submitted a request for a hearing with the DEQ.
In the hearing request, Agilyx “denies elements of the findings” related to improper storage and labeling of hazardous waste at the facility. The company does admit to failing to have “an up-to-date contingency plan for responding to emergency situations” and a permit to store hazardous waste.
Representatives from Agilyx and Waste Management did not respond to a request for further comment on the matter.
Steve Siegel, an environmental attorney for the DEQ, told Plastics Recycling Update an informal meeting will take place before a hearing is decided on.
The DEQ notice states hazardous waste is no longer at the facility, and it says the “company’s efforts to correct the violations” were considered when deciding on the fine amount.
The situation mirrors similar violations at another Agilyx facility, located in Tigard, Oregon, which was fined last year by the DEQ for nearly $50,000.
