Oregon Department of Environmental Quality sent San Mateo-based J.H. Baxter & Co. a warning letter on March 31 for various hazardous waste law violations discovered by DEQ during an unannounced inspection on March 25 at Baxter’s wood treatment facility in Eugene’s Trainsong neighborhood. Violations included failure to label hazardous waste, failure to conduct required hazardous waste inspections, failure to provide up-to-date contingency plans to first responders and failure to clean up spills. DEQ recommended that Baxter “improve housekeeping for [the] entire site,” and requested a written response by May 6, including documentation of removal of hydrocarbon-contaminated soil observed during the inspection.

The city of Eugene sent “request for corrective action” letters to four Eugene businesses earlier this month for various Clean Water Act industrial stormwater violations. A & K Development Company was sent a second notice for having a drainage structure not identified on its site map at its facility at 410 Chambers; Emerald Steel Fabricators was notified of deficiencies in employee training and site inspection, and several instances of storage of hazardous materials without required secondary containment at its facility on Enid Road; FORREST Technical Coatings was notified of its failure to take required actions in response to elevated pollutant levels measured in December at its facility on McKinley Street; and Zip-O-Log Mills was notified of deficiencies in employee training at its 6th Avenue and Waite Street locations, and for significant off-site sediment tracking from its Waite Street location.