Posted: November 25th, 2009 - 9:32pm
Source: Oregon Daily Emerald

EPA fines companies for producing pesticides but failing to submit reports or register facilities
Three Northwest agriculture companies received fines last week for violating federally enforced pesticide laws.
The three companies in violation were Agricare of Amity, J.R. Simplot Company of Boise, Idaho, and Northwest Agricultural Products of Pasco, Wash.
Agricare, a company that manufactures mineral powder used to reduce odor in industrial lagoons, was fined $2,160 for waiting a year to officially register as a pesticide facility.
Scott Downey, manager of Seattle’s Environmental Protection Agency facility that issued the fines, said the 400 companies in Oregon, Alaska, Washington and Idaho under his office’s watch are required to submit pesticide information on March 1 each year.
“If the business is late in informing the EPA the first year, we send them a warning letter,” Downey said. “A fine is usually issued if the company has not complied with the deadline more than once.”
This timely ruling is found under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act, which regulates pesticide distribution, sale and use in the U.S. Set into law in 1947, FIFRA is said to be one of the oldest national environmental laws, according to Downey.