A Pasco fertilizer manufacturer was fined $25,500 by the Washington Department of Ecology for operating a mobile fertilizer reactor without an air quality permit. Fertilizer production can release ammonia and fluoride, both toxic gases that can be dangerous to people.

The penalty is the third in the past two years for Pacific Northwest Solutions. The company was previously fined $5,000 in 2019 and again in 2020, both times for failing to properly test their equipment to ensure it met air quality emissions standards.

“Protecting air quality is not optional for businesses in our state – it’s the law,” said David Knight, Air Quality manager for Ecology’s Eastern Region. “We hope Pacific Northwest Solutions takes this penalty seriously and brings its operations into compliance.”

The $25,500 penalty was issued after an Ecology inspector found a Pacific Northwest Solutions’s mobile fertilizer reactor operating without a permit on March 8, 2021 at a site near Moses Lake. An investigation found that the reactor produced a total of 650 tons of ammonium polyphosphate liquid fertilizer over three days.

Pacific Northwest Solutions can appeal the penalty within 30 days to the Washington Pollution Control Hearings Board.