A self-service used auto-parts company will pay more than $2.5 million as part of a settlement with 14 California district attorneys over the company’s illegal disposal of hazardous waste, authorities said Friday.
Pick-n-Pull also was fined for polluting storm water, according to statements issued by several of the district attorney’s office involved in the litigation.
The settlement consists of $1.85 million in civil penalties, $350,000 in enforcement costs, and $350,000 to be given to environmental projects. In Contra Costa County, that includes the Contra Costa Fish and Wildlife Propagation Fund.
“It’s a priority to protect our environment and especially our water ways from harmful pollutants,” Contra Costa District Attorney Diana Becton said in a statement. “When contacted by prosecutors, Pick-n-Pull promptly implemented improved training procedures and practices relating to their hazardous waste disposal.”
In Santa Clara County, prosecutors detailed how investigators began looking into the company after the infamous 2017 Coyote Creek flood that deluged multiple neighborhoods in San Jose — which included a Pick-n-Pull location — and found contaminated untreated storm water flowing into the creek.
They added that the company has installed a stormwater treatment system at its San Jose site, and that $95,000 of the penalty funds will be directed to the nonprofit organizations Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful and the South Bay Clean Creeks Coalition.
“Coyote Creek is an important natural resource,” Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen said. “It will be protected.”
Pick-n-Pull owns 21 facilities in Northern California and is a subsidiary of Schnitzer Steel, Inc. The company buys vehicles at the end of their life, sells the parts, and recycles the steel.
Authorities said the settlement comes after a series of unannounced waste inspections showed Pick-n-Pull facilities illegally disposed of auto fluids, aerosols, batteries, and electronic devices. Inspectors in Contra Costa, Santa Clara, San Joaquin, Sacramento, Alameda and Solano counties participated in the coordinated investigation.
Staff writer Robert Salonga contributed to this report.
