Science & Environment

Oregon fines Da Yang Seafood for discharge into river

By AP staff (AP)
ASTORIA, Ore. Dec. 24, 2021 4:59 p.m.

Da Yang Seafood has been fined $105,000 by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality for improperly discharging wastewater into the Columbia River.

The state says the violations happened 32 times between June 2018 and June 2021 from the seafood processor's facility at Pier 2 at the Port of Astoria. When the wastewater was dumped, the state said Da Yang failed to comply with the permitting limits for effluent, The Astorian reported this week.

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“Pollutant effluent limits in the permit are set at levels necessary to protect human health and the environment,” Kieran O’Donnell, manager for the Department of Environmental Quality’s Office of Compliance and Enforcement, said in a letter to Da Yang. “By exceeding these levels, Da Yang created a risk that its effluent would harm water quality and aquatic life.”

According to Lauren Wirtis, a Department of Environmental Quality spokesperson, the violations were determined based on Da Yang’s self-reporting.

The highest exceedance of total suspended solids — a measure of floating particles — reached upward of 1,000 percent over the limit, Wirtis said.

In 2015, the company was fined over $85,000 for improperly discharging wastewater into Youngs Bay over seven years. The seafood processor was also fined $54,600 in 2017 for discharging wastewater into the Columbia River.

Representatives from Da Yang could not immediately be reached for comment, the newspaper said.

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