PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Oregon state officials have lifted a cease-and-desist order on a Portland company after the company agreed to restrictions on its use of toxic metals, including lead.
Bullseye Glass agreed to a state mandate on Monday to stop using certain heavy metals.
The company in February voluntarily ceased using arsenic, cadmium and hexavalent chromium in furnaces lacking pollution controls. The agreement adds lead to the list.
The agreement also allows Bullseye to resume using other metals like selenium, manganese, cobalt or nickel, if they submit a written request that is approved by the Department of Environmental Quality, who will check the use of the metals with air test results.
Bullseye must also turn over detailed information on its furnaces, glass making recipes, emission control tests and plans for additional controls.
Nicholas Caleb with the watchdog group Neighbors for Clean Air says there was no chance for the public to weigh in on these new rules.
“I don’t think that they understand the degree to which their trust has been impacted in the last few months and they need to take extra steps to rebuild that trust and that means involving the public in big decisions,” he says.
Another group, the Eastside Air Coalition, has said it would like to see the governor stick to her cease and desist order.
Bullseye has 9 days to turn over all the information. Any violation of the agreement could mean a daily fine of $2,400.
Gov. Kate Brown issued the order to Bullseye in May after monitoring at a daycare near the business showed lead levels four times higher than the 24-hour benchmark.The Associated Press contributed to this report.