Disneyland Agrees to Pay $550,000 to Settle Toxic Waste Complaint
Disneyland, world-famous for its sparkling-clean park, agreed Friday to pay one of the largest toxic waste fines ever assessed in the United States for hiring a company that illegally disposed of the amusement park’s hazardous materials for two years.
The $550,000 fine settles a complaint filed by the Environmental Protection Agency. The complaint charges Disneyland with 38 violations of federal toxic waste laws.
EPA officials said Disneyland’s contractor hauled 14,000 gallons of paint thinners, cleaning materials such as acetone and other toxic garbage from Anaheim to disposal facilities in Wyoming and Utah that are not permitted to handle the waste. Thirteen shipments were hauled to a Wyoming plant and one to Utah in 1988 and 1989, officials said.
Disney officials on Friday acknowledged the illegal disposal and said they were embarrassed by the violations. They said they were unaware that the contractor, Ken’s Oil Co. of Garden Grove, was handling the waste improperly.
The Disneyland penalty was the largest ever paid by a toxic waste producer, Janik said. A larger fine, $2 million, was paid a few years ago by Chemical Waste Management for numerous violations at its toxic waste landfill in Central California. But that fine involved a disposal company.
Disney filed suit Thursday against Ken’s Oil Co. in Orange County Superior Court. Company officials were unavailable for comment Friday.
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