ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, December 17, 1996 TAG: 9612170082
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-4 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: NORFOLK
SOURCE: Associated Press
The federal government sued Smithfield Foods and two of its subsidiaries Monday for illegally polluting the Pagan River.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court on behalf of the Environmental Protection Agency, alleged that the Smithfield Packing Co. and Gwaltney of Smithfield Ltd. dumped illegal levels of pollutants into the river, which flows into the James River and eventually the Chesapeake Bay.
The subsidiaries each operate a hog slaughtering and processing plant in Smithfield, where the violations allegedly occurred beginning in 1991.
The suit comes after the federal government twice extended its deadline for getting the meat processor to agree to pay $3.5 million in fines for environmental violations. The deadline, originally Nov. 1, was put off to mid-December at Smithfield's request.
``Three-point-five million is no longer on the table,'' Michael McCabe, a regional EPA administrator, said Monday. ``It'll probably be a lot higher.''
The EPA has accused the administration of Gov. George Allen of reducing environmental enforcement.
Recently, the EPA withheld $1.6 million from the state Department of Environmental Quality because the federal agency is getting only three-fourths of the state's discharge monitoring reports.
Environmental activists contend that a state lawsuit filed this summer against Smithfield Foods was intended to head off a federal court case. The federal government is barred from suing where the state is pursuing a polluter. But, McCabe said, ``if it is determined that they are not diligent, the federal government can overfile.''
``This is a typical Washington stunt, to come in after the state has done all the work and try and take credit,'' said March Bell, DEQ deputy director.
Aaron Trub, a vice president of Smithfield, could not be reached Monday.
LENGTH: Short : 42 linesby CNB