BELLEVUE WA (4/22/2010) ? A Seattle furniture-stripping operation faces an $82,200 Department of Ecology (Ecology) fine for failing to properly store and dispose of hazardous wastes.
Ecology responded last year at the request of Seattle Public Utilities (SPU), which had investigated a damaged private connection to the city?s sewer at 4813 8th Ave. NW in Seattle. A facility operated at that address as Furniture Spa, but now is an annex to Ballard Refinishers, Inc., both under the same ownership.
SPU contacted Ecology because the city was concerned that the company had discharged highly toxic and corrosive waste materials into the sewer line.
Hazardous waste violations found during Ecology inspections include:
? Improper storage: Furniture Spa used a floor sump (a paved pit) as storage for waste methylene chloride used in furniture stripping. The sump did not meet storage tank requirements for hazardous wastes, and the company provided no secondary containment system to hold spills or leaks of liquid waste. Waste remained in the sump more than 90 days, the maximum time allowed under state and federal hazardous waste laws.
? Failure to designate hazardous waste: State and federal law require businesses to assess their process wastes, identify those that are hazardous ? a process called designation ? which determines proper storage, handling and disposal. Furniture Spa had not designated wastes from work areas that used methylene chloride, sodium hydroxide, soy-based solvents and the contents of the floor sump.
? Illegal disposal: Furniture Spa discharged waste from the floor sump into the sanitary sewer. Disposal to the sewer requires a discharge permit from the King County Wastewater Treatment Division.
? Failure to notify: A business that generates 220 or more pounds of hazardous waste must notify Ecology. The agency found records indicating that Furniture Spa shipped dangerous waste through a licensed dangerous waste disposal contractor by falsely identifying itself as exempt from this reporting requirement.
?Avoiding the costs of complying with the dangerous waste laws gained Furniture Spa an unfair advantage over the many firms that do comply,? said K Seiler, who manages Ecology?s Hazardous Waste and Toxics Reduction program. ?We recognize that operating in a lawful manner costs money. Most importantly, improper handling and disposal of dangerous waste places the community and environment at an unnecessary risk.?
Ecology investigated these violations on May 4 and 28, 2010, in cooperation with SPU and the King County Wastewater Treatment Division?s Industrial Waste program. The Puget Sound Clean Air Agency conducted a separate investigation for air-emissions violations. After these inspections, Furniture Spa filled in the sump and later ceased retail operations under that name.
The penalty may be appealed to the Washington State Pollution Control Hearings Board within 30 days.
In a separate action, Ecology?s Toxic Cleanup Program has placed the property where Furniture Spa operated on its list of Confirmed and Suspected Contaminated Sites for contamination that entered soil and groundwater from the damaged side sewer line.
Enforcement of hazardous waste laws supports Ecology?s initiatives to reduce toxic threats and protect Puget Sound.
Contacts: Larry Altose, Ecology media relations, 206-920-2600, larry.altose@ecy.wa.gov; Daylin Davidson, hazardous waste compliance inspector, 425-649-7090, daylin.davidson@ecy.wa.gov
