Last summer, the Washington Department of Ecology imposed a fine of $501,000 on Electron Hydro, LLC because the company sprinkled discarded plastic turf into the Puyallup River.

The company used turf to pave a bypass channel because it diverts the flow of the river in a construction project.

Fragments of artificial turf were found 21 miles downstream. The Ministry of Ecology said at a press conference on Tuesday that the ground tire rubber deposits believed to have been used as turf fillers have flowed to the mouth of the river and into Tacoma’s Bay of Work, 41 miles downstream.

The turf and its shredded materials are toxic when ingested by fish and other aquatic organisms. Puyallup is home to many protected endangered species: hardhead trout, bull trout and chinook, which are an important food source for the endangered killer whales in the south.

Scientists have recently documented that tire rubber is particularly toxic to codfish and can cause death before spawning. Usually the source is indirect, from rainwater washing the road. But in this case, the rubber is ground and deposited directly in the river.

"These toxic substances have no place in the river," Ecological Director Laura Watson said in a press release. "The power of water tore the turf, washed it into the river, and sent it directly into the food web. This is an environmental tragedy that didn't have to happen."

In addition to fines, Ecology also issued an executive order to the company to resolve ongoing water quality violations related to Electron Hydro's operations. The new requirements include the development of water quality management plans to address sediment, temperature and toxic substances.

The fines will be paid to the state's Coastal Protection Fund, which provides grants to public agencies and tribes for water quality restoration projects. Electron Hydro can appeal penalties, orders, or both to the Washington State Pollution Control Hearing Board.

Chris Spens, head of regulatory and environmental affairs at Tollhouse Energy Company, which owns and operates the dam, said in an email that the company will appeal the fine without comment.

Bill Sterud, chairman of the Indian Puyallup tribe, said that he was “happy that ecology is studying this matter seriously. I want to say that I am very happy, but I am very cautious.

"I assure you that the Puyallup tribe will not waver in taking care of our fish. The electronic dam is simply brutal... It is not just fish, it is our culture, it is our world, and they don’t take care of it. Fish are putting this world in danger."

Strud said that the tribe’s bottom line is that the dam should be demolished.

"Our fish cannot speak for themselves. We must speak for our fish," he said.

Electron Hydro generates electricity by drawing water from a river near Orting in eastern Pierce County. The water flows through an elevated tank for 10 miles and then returns to the river through a power station.

The leak occurred when the company began construction to replace its diversion dam and water intake structure built in 1903. This work includes the construction of a temporary bypass channel to divert the river from the construction area.

The company chose to use artificial turf taken from the waste pile of a quarry not far from the site to lay the bypass channel. The company has no right to use any organization's turf in its projects.

The company has laid more than 2,400 square yards of sports lawn under the cushion. The river moved the liner and tore the turf on the second night after installation, transporting approximately 617 square yards of lawn and approximately 4 to 6 cubic yards of rubber debris downstream.

Electron Hydro has not reported this release to Ecology or other licensing agencies. A worker at the dam first reported what he saw on social media, and then to Ecology on July 30.

The company later notified Ecology that it had begun cleaning up turf materials on rivers and coastlines, and reported that 13,000 pounds of turf had been placed in the landfill at the beginning of the cleanup.

After the large area was torn up in July, the remaining part of the lining and turf on the construction site remained in place until the river returned to its main channel on October 25. The bare sports turf fragments continue to drain into the river-and according to ecology, the rubber crumbs are still in the river, in the deep pool, all the way to the Kaigong Bay.

"This is a completely preventable release," Rich Doenges, director of the Southwest Ecoregion, said in a telephone interview. "And it contains a substance that is toxic to fish... There is no way to eliminate it all, so the impact continues."

The company also faces multiple lawsuits, including lawsuits from multiple environmental organizations, the U.S. Department of Justice, and Puyallup Tribe. These lawsuits were filed against the dam owner in the Washington District Court of the Western United States.

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