New Settlement Over Pesticide Violations Costs Company $79,000 in Civil Penalties
“EPA settlement with PBI-Gordon Corporation resolves alleged violations of pesticide labeling requirements in Longmont, Colorado, and Monroe, Washington
Agreement with Kansas-based company resolves findings of non-compliance
DENVER (November 6, 2019) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced a settlement with PBI-Gordon Corporation (PBI) of Shawnee, Kansas, resolving alleged violations of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) in Longmont, Colorado, and Monroe, Washington. Under the terms of a Consent Agreement and Final Order filed on November 5th, PBI will pay a civil penalty of $79,000 to resolve the alleged violations.
“EPA’s pesticide laws ensure that consumers have clear and current information about products and how to use them safely,” said Suzanne Bohan, director of EPA’s regional enforcement program. “We will continue to secure compliance with labeling requirements that protect people from exposure to potentially harmful chemicals.”
The PBI-Gordon Corporation supplies herbicide products to approximately 60 distributors throughout the United States which package and sell lawn turf weed-and-feed products to retailers such as Ace Hardware, Lowe’s and Walmart. As the registrant of these herbicides, PBI is responsible for ensuring its distributors are using the most current and complete pesticide labels to ensure protection of human health and the environment.
Today’s settlement resulted from EPA-led inspections at PBI distributor facilities in Colorado and Washington. On June 9, 2015, EPA conducted an inspection at the company’s Wolfkill facility in Monroe, Washington, and found the facility was packaging a weed-and-feed product with labels missing required information including precautionary language, directions and instructions for proper use, and current storage and disposal directions.
On July 29, 2016, EPA conducted an inspection at the Gro Tech II/Green-it Turf facility in Longmont, Colorado. EPA found the facility was distributing two PBI weed-and-feed products with outdated labels missing required storage and disposal directions.
FIFRA’s labeling requirements provide the public with important, current information on how to safely use, store and dispose of pesticide products.”
Do not dismiss the importance of proper labeling, storage and disposal of pesticides. Violating these requirements puts you at risk. Knowing what you can do to avoid violations like this can help keep you and your business safe.
Check out our Pesticide Awareness training now and learn about pesticide laws, Best Management Practices, proper storage and disposal of pesticides, and what to expect during an inspection.
Stay safe. Stay in compliance.
You can read more at https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-settlement-pbi-gordon-corporation-resolves-alleged-violations-pesticide-labeling