After 2018 Fire And Injury To Employee, Alaska Hatchery To Pay $1 Million In Damages

Here’s the Anchorage Daily News:

An Alaska salmon hatchery operator will pay $1 million and plead guilty to illegally burning waste oil and jet fuel at a remote site in Prince William Sound in a 2018 incident that severely burned an employee, according to a plea agreement unveiled last week in federal court.

The Prince William Sound Aquaculture Corp. will pay a $450,000 fine and plead guilty to one count of illegal disposal of hazardous waste, the 18-page agreement says. The private nonprofit company will also pay $550,000 in restitution to the employee, and follow an environmental compliance plan during a five-year probationary period, the agreement says.

The company operates five hatcheries in the Prince William Sound region, including three owned by the state, providing salmon for fishermen. Remote hatcheries need oil and fuel to support operations that include buildings, vehicles and living quarters for crew.