Dive Brief:

• The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) fined a recycling company based in Eugene, Oregon, because it did not perform the appropriate tests on soil it excavated before it was brought to local landfills.
• The recycler, Pacific Recycling Inc., was fined $2,400 for the misstep.
• According to DEQ officials, last fall the company started excavation on a site located next to its facility. 368 tons of dirt was removed using an incorrect waste profile; the approval was for petroleum-contaminated soil, but the dirt removed had traces of chemicals used in wood-treatment.

Dive Insight:

The company complied with requests from the DEQ to test soil samples, and proper waste tests were conducted on samples that were available. DEQ cited the company for disposing of hazardous waste at a non-hazardous site, and for transporting the contaminated materials without a manifest.