Huntington Beach : Firm Fined $1,200 in Chemical Dumping Case

A Huntington Beach metal-processing company charged with illegally dumping a hazardous chemical in a back alley was fined $1,200 this week to reimburse Orange County officials for investigating and prosecuting the case.

Superior Court Judge Everett Dickey also ordered the firm, Ano D’Art Inc., to halt any further unauthorized dumping of hazardous chemicals near the plant at 7436 Lorge Circle.

A complaint filed by the Orange County district attorney’s office alleged that Ano D’Art had dumped a red liquid containing acetone--a highly volatile and flammable material commonly used as a solvent--in an alley near the building between August, 1984, and February, 1985.

A few months before the illegal dumping, Huntington Beach firefighters were called to the plant when an unexplained roof collapse blocked access to other dangerous chemicals stored in the building, prompting fears that a toxic cloud, fire or explosion could be sparked by any further structural failures.

Robert Merryman, county environmental health director, said that the current investigation was unrelated to the roof collapse.

The district attorney’s office had originally sought penalties of at least $25,000 against the company, but both parties agreed to the smaller fine coupled with the pledge to halt future unauthorized chemical disposal at the plant.