Kaiser Hit With Another Air Pollution Fine

For the third time in six months, Kaiser Aluminum’s Mead smelter has been fined for air pollution.

The Washington Department of Ecology fined Kaiser $18,400 on Tuesday for excessive sulfur dioxide emissions, bringing the smelter’s total fines to $104,400 since December.

Ecology sets limits on how many pounds of sulfur dioxide can be released for every pound of aluminum produced.

A quarterly test last fall showed Kaiser was producing 4.77 pounds of sulfur dioxide per ton of aluminum, when only 4.5 pounds per ton is allowed.

Sulfur dioxide is a gas that can cause respiratory problems.

Because of the violation, Ecology also ordered Kaiser Tuesday to start monitoring the Mead smelter for air pollution monthly instead of quarterly, starting in July.

“We are concerned about these ongoing problems. We expect them to step up their monitoring for a year,” said Ecology spokeswoman Jani Gilbert.

If no further violations occur, the plant may resume quarterly stack testing in July 2000, according to the Ecology order.

The problems occurred when Kaiser was switching over to a more modern process to bake the carbon anodes used to create molten aluminum, said Kaiser spokeswoman Susan Ashe.

“It’s significant to note that since the transition in October we’ve dramatically reduced the SO2 (sulfur dioxide) emitted,” she said.

Many of Kaiser Mead’s other pollution fines have been for excessive particulates.

In May, Kaiser was fined $37,200 for exceeding particulate limits at Mead last January. Company officials blamed a collapsed baghouse filter for the problem.

Kaiser has been running its plants in Spokane and Tacoma with temporary replacement workers and salaried managers since a lengthy labor dispute began Sept. 30.

The strike and lockout have contributed to the pollution problems, said Larry Strom, a union leader at Mead.

“This shows Kaiser management’s disregard for the environment and the community’s health,” Strom said.

Countered Ashe: “We know and understand our environmental responsibilities and we take them seriously.”

Kaiser has paid most of its pollution fines, Gilbert said.

The company has appealed an April 8 fine of $37,200 for violations of particulate limits at its Tacoma smelter.

The Tacoma emissions contained polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, a human carcinogen, Ecology said.

The Mead smelter uses a different smelting process that doesn’t release the hydrocarbons, Ashe said.

Kaiser is trying to reduce its overall emissions by 800 tons a year, Ashe said.

Karen Dorn Steele can be reached at 459-5462 or by e-mail at karend@spokesman.com.

THE PENALTIES Kaiser fines April: Fine of $37,200 for violations of particulate limits at its Tacoma smelter. May: Fine of $37,200 for exceeding particulate limits at Mead. June: Fine of $18,400 for excessive sulfur dioxide emissions.