Dive Brief:
- Washington’s Department of Ecology cited Nippon Dynawave Packaging on Wednesday for 35 environmental violations related to the May 26 white liquor tank implosion at the Longview pulp and paper mill that killed 11 people and injured eight others.
- NDP has 30 days to respond to Ecology before any enforcement actions would occur. Ecology has two years to take enforcement actions, such as issuing fines or compliance orders.
- Separately, the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries announced on Tuesday that it cited NDP for a safety violation stemming from an investigation launched in March that is unrelated to the tank implosion. NDP has 15 days to appeal.
Dive Insight:
Ecology describes itself as the primary environmental regulator for the Nippon Dynawave mill. It oversees elements such as the facility’s air and water quality permits, compliance with dangerous waste laws, and prevention plans for spills and stormwater pollution. However, the agency does not regulate aspects including the structural integrity of the white liquor tank. Other state and federal investigations are ongoing for those types of safety and compliance matters.
Ecology detailed the findings of its investigation in a 70-page report. Most of the violations described in the agency’s initial determination are related to the effects of the 900,000 gallons of white liquor that spilled and spread across the site after the tank failed. The liquid reached storm drains and NDP’s sanitary wastewater treatment system, while some bypassed treatment and made it to the Columbia River, according to Ecology.
The agency says larger volumes reached a nearby ditch before workers could close an outfall. That resulted in “widespread fish die-offs and the city posting signs warning local residents to stay away. Impacts continued for up to eight days.”
The report said the water quality violations “constitute significant noncompliance.” Further, the agency determined NDP “is a significant non-complier with the Dangerous Waste regulations.”
The Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers, the union representing NDP employees, issued a statement Wednesday saying the “serious environmental impacts” that Ecology detailed in the report “must be addressed through the established regulatory process.”
“At the same time, we remain proud of the workers who responded under extraordinarily dangerous and traumatic conditions,” said Josh Estes, AWPPW spokesperson. Facility employees “worked urgently to protect people, stabilize the mill, contain the release and minimize further harm to the surrounding community, even as they were confronting the loss of their friends and coworkers.”
On the federal side, the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board also is investigating the implosion. During a June meeting, CSB said its investigation would focus on four areas: mechanisms that led to the tank failure; facility siting; maintenance and mechanical integrity; and relevant facility, corporate and industry standards. CSB expects to release an update by the end of September and a full report sometime next spring.
The Washington state attorney general’s office also is investigating. It’s looking into whether any criminal activity contributed to the tank implosion.
The state’s investigation by the Department of Labor & Industries is examining what caused the incident and whether any safety violations occurred. It has until Nov. 22 to release its report.
L&I’s citation this week is related to one of the two investigations it opened into NDP just weeks before the May tank implosion. It stemmed from a plant worker reporting a broken valve handle on an aqua ammonia clarifier tank used to treat wastewater from the mill’s pulp and paper operations. The valve would not close because the handle was detached.
L&I opened the other, unrelated investigation on May 6 following a drain failure that caused an approximately four-foot-deep sinkhole at the NDP mill. A worker stepped into that hole, which was full of hot pulp, according to L&I. That investigation is ongoing.
In July, that agency also announced it launched inspections at the two other kraft pulp and paper mills in the state: Smurfit Westrock’s Longview plant, down the road from NDP, and Port Townsend Paper Co. in Port Townsend. These investigations are “precautionary, proactive steps for worker safety,” according to L&I.
Meanwhile, numerous local news outlets have reported that NDP appears to be trying to restart operations at the Longview site. They report NDP began dismantling and removing the damaged white liquor tank and two other storage tanks on Aug. 17.
Nippon Dynawave Packaging released a statement last week saying it’s “actively supporting the ongoing independent investigations” that L&I and CSB are conducting.
“At this time, we will not speculate about the root cause without the full facts. Doing so would be a disservice to our committed employees and to the families still mourning the loss of their loved ones,” the statement says.
NDP has not provided estimates on when it might reopen the site, but analysts’ early estimates suggested it could take six months depending on the extent of damage. The company told employees in July that they would continue to be paid through October.
