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EPA Fines Former Petaluma Company $35,000 for Waste Violations

Release Date: 10/7/2002
Contact Information: Leo Kay, Press Office, 415/947-4306

     SAN FRANCISCO -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency fined SOLA Optical $34,923 yesterday for hazardous waste storage and recordkeeping violations discovered at its Petaluma, Calif. facility in the year 2000.

     EPA inspectors cited SOLA Optical short for Scientific Optical Laboratory of Australia International, Inc. for storing hazardous waste without a permit, failing to properly label containers, failing to keep training records and failing to keep an updated hazardous waste contingency plan.

     "Facilities that handle or store hazardous waste must follow the proper environmental protocols to safeguard workers and the surrounding community," said Jeff Scott, director of the EPA's Waste Division in San Francisco.  "As the old adage goes, 'an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.'"  

     SOLA Optical has since shut down its facility on Cader Lane in Petaluma, and has relocated to Mexico.