Brown and 8 District Attorneys Force U-Haul to Improve Handling
of Hazardous Materials
Oakland - Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. and eight District Attorneys
today reached an agreement requiring U-Haul Company of California to "clean up
its act" and improve the way it handles and disposes of hazardous materials at
its 179 regulated facilities throughout the state.
"U-Haul has turned a
blind eye to California's hazardous materials laws for years, even after an
explosion and fire severely damaged one of its facilities," Brown said. "This
agreement forces U-Haul to clean up its act and improve the way it handles
hazardous materials, plans for emergencies and trains employees."
U-Haul's hazardous materials practices first came under scrutiny in
November 2004, following an explosion and two-alarm fire at a Santa Rosa
facility, which resulted in flash burns to an employee.
The emergency
response team that arrived on the scene had difficulty assessing the situation
due to the lack of information about stored hazardous materials. The facility
had no site map indicating where hazardous materials were stored as required by
law, and employees had failed to properly label flammable materials including
gasoline. The building was damaged in the fire and ultimately closed.
Subsequently, the Attorney General's office and 8 District Attorneys
launched a 2-year statewide investigation into U-Haul's handling of hazardous
materials and training of employees. The investigation revealed violations at
virtually all of U-Haul's 179 California regulated facilities. Despite being
repeatedly notified of the violations, U-Haul did not address them.
Such
violations include:
- Inadequate training regarding handling of
hazardous materials and hazardous materials business plans;
- Improper
storage of hazardous waste such as oil filters and pans, waste gasoline and car
batteries;
- Improper transport of hazardous waste; and
- Lack of
statutorily mandated hazardous material business plans and emergency response
plans.
The Attorney General's office, joined by the District Attorneys
of Sonoma, Alameda, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Solano, San Francisco, Santa Clara
and Riverside, filed suit on July 27, 2006, seeking penalties and a permanent
injunction to enforce compliance with hazardous materials and hazardous waste
laws.
Today's agreement resolves the lawsuit and requires U-Haul to:
- Complete and maintain statutorily mandated hazardous material business
plans and emergency response plans for regulated facilities;
- Train its
employees how to properly handle hazardous materials;
- Retain an
environmental coordinator who will oversee, monitor and submit annual reports on
the company's compliance;
- Inspect hazardous waste storage areas at
regulated facilities on a weekly basis;
- Properly transport hazardous
waste; and
- Pay $2 million in costs and penalties.
This settlement,
filed in Alameda County Superior Court, is attached.
