Calif. firm fined for selling restricted pesticide

SEATTLE, Wash. — The improper sale of a restricted pesticide to an uncertified buyer in Yakima was among 21 violations by the Wilbur-Ellis Company that resulted in the California firm agreeing to pay a fine of nearly $100,000, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today.

The fine resolved an investigation that stretched over two years and three states, starting with the discovery of incomplete labeling on a product on the Fort Mojave Indian reservation in Arizona, EPA officials said. The label lacked key safety instructions,  inspectors said.

The agency alleged that violations at a Wilbur-Ellis manufacturing plant in Arizona included misbranding and providing incomplete product labeling.

In Idaho, state and federal inspectors said that a highly toxic chemical known as Vengeance Plus was being sold without key safety instructions.

— Mark Morey