SEATTLE — Based on settlement agreements with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), two seafood processors operating in Alaskan waters failed to comply with Clean Water Act permits that regulate seafood waste discharges, according to a press release.
Aleutian Leader Fisheries and Salamatof Seafoods agreed to settle the violations with EPA in separate agreements and pay fines, noted the release.
“Clean Water Act permits protect Alaska’s important marine habitat and the ocean food chain,” said Jeff KenKnight, manager of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Compliance Unit at the EPA office in Seattle. “All seafood processors need to comply with permit requirements to level the playing field for businesses and ensure that everyone is doing their part to protect the environment.”
[Related content: EPA issues vessel general permit regulating discharges from commercial vessels]
The Clean Water Act requires vessels and shore-based seafood processing facilities to grind seafood waste to a maximum size of ½ inch in order to increase dispersion of solids into the ocean.
This ½ inch grind requirement was created specifically to protect remote areas of Alaska.
Read the entire press release here.
