EPA Charges 10 Violations : Teledyne Ryan May Face Federal Fine Over PCB Pollution

Federal environmental officials have proposed fining Teledyne Ryan Aeronautical $63,000 for allegedly mishandling polychlorinated biphenyls, the suspected carcinogens that state investigators have found in San Diego Bay near the Teledyne plant.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Tuesday that it had delivered a civil complaint to the large San Diego defense contractor charging 10 counts of violating the federal law that governs the handling of PCBs.

The alleged violations range from inadequate record-keeping to actual PCB spills.

The proposed penalty consists of fines ranging from $1,500 to $20,000 for each of the counts. Teledyne may either contest the charges or negotiate a settlement--the course that company officials said Tuesday they intend to pursue.

The news came just two weeks after the EPA announced that it would fine another large San Diego defense contractor, General Dynamics’ Convair Division, $20,000 for similar alleged violations of the federal Toxic Substances Control Act.

General Dynamics, which state investigators are also scrutinizing to determine whether the firm might have contributed to the contamination in the bay, has agreed to pay the fine.

Handling of PCBs by aerospace firms and facilities near the bay has become a focus of attention because of the high PCB levels found in the bay’s Convair Lagoon. In recent years, the recorded levels have been among the highest ever reported in California coastal waters.

State investigators have suggested that PCBs reached the lagoon through storm drains leading from the property of at least one firm, Teledyne Ryan. They are beginning an investigation of storm drains leading from half a dozen firms, including General Dynamics.

PCBs are man-made chlorinated hydrocarbons that were used for many years as fluids in transformers and capacitors. Production was banned in 1978 in light of evidence that they cause cancer in animals and have other health effects on humans.

On Tuesday, Al Zemsky, a spokesman for the EPA in San Francisco, said the agency had prepared a civil complaint against Teledyne Ryan alleging eight counts of improper use, storage and disposal of PCBs, and two counts of inadequate record-keeping.

Zemsky said the agency had proposed a $20,000 fine for the company’s alleged failure to provide the quarterly inspection records required for all equipment containing PCBs. There would also be $5,000 fines for each of six instances of PCB spills and leaks.

The complaint also alleged that PCB equipment had been stored for more than a year while awaiting disposal, in violation of the law, and that the company had no annual documents detailing its PCB handling for 1983 and 1984.

Zemsky said the firm has 20 days to respond to the complaint by either requesting a hearing or beginning settlement negotiations. Zemsky said most similar cases end in informal negotiations and a settlement.

On Tuesday, Teledyne Ryan released a statement attributed to corporate counsel Conward Williams noting that the record-keeping allegations apply only to 1983 and 1984. “Current record-keeping meets and is in compliance with EPA requirements,” the statement said.

Williams also stated that the six counts of illegal discharges “are actually minor leaks in fittings, plugs and valves found during the inspection which were promptly corrected in accordance with EPA requirements.”

He said the company plans to replace those leaking transformers this year and next.

“The EPA cover letter encourages Teledyne Ryan Aeronautical to ‘explore the possibility of settlement,’ ” Williams’ statement said. “The company intends to do so.”

In July, the Regional Water Quality Control Board blamed Teledyne Ryan at least in part for the high PCB levels found in Convair Lagoon. The firm challenged the agency’s conclusions, questioning its sampling methods and data analysis.

At the board’s request, however, Teledyne Ryan has cleaned out its storm drain sumps. It is working on a plan to sample the concentration of PCBs in the sediment in the lagoon.

On Tuesday, David Barker, a senior engineer with the board, said he could not say how the EPA’s findings and charges might affect his agency’s case against Teledyne Ryan.