The Portland Vancouver Junction Railroad (PVJR) company will pay a $31,058 penalty as part of a settlement with the Washington Department of Ecology over water quality violations at three Clark County construction sites.
The settlement resolves an appeal of a legal order that Ecology issued in spring 2024, which required the company to not pollute at three Clark County construction sites and secure the proper water quality permits. PVJR appealed Ecology’s order and failed to get the permits.
The settlement required the railroad to resolve the environmental concerns Ecology laid out in the March 2024 order, which includes preventing soil erosion on the sites and not discharging stormwater or pollutants from its properties. The company also agreed to get permit coverage before it does further construction work on its sites.
This settlement is one of several stemming from actions that Ecology and other agencies have taken to address issues at PVJR sites.
The construction work is tied to PVJR’s efforts to develop several new railyards along the 33 miles of the Chelatchie Prairie Railroad tracks between Vancouver and Amboy.
Thousands of sites across the state are covered under the construction stormwater general permit and follow state guidelines to protect water quality. Ecology places water quality penalty payments into the state’s Coastal Protection Fund, which provides grants to public agencies and Tribes for water quality restoration projects.
Washington’s Pollution Hearings Board accepted the settlement and dismissed PVJR’s appeal Sept. 10, 2025.