Japanese corporation Marubeni has locked out ILWU workers from its Columbia Grain facility in Portland. DEQ alleges the ship La Bamba recently discharged nearly 300,000 gallons of ballast into the Willamette. The ballast water originated in the upper San Francisco Bay estuary, which harbors numerous non-native species that represent a high risk for introduction into Oregon waters, DEQ says.
Japanese merchant ship “La Bamba” was fined $15,600 by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality for discharging its ballast water illegally into the Willamette River.
The Toyko-based ship, owned by Marine Ace Co. Ltd., was docked in Portland on May 19, berthed at the Columbia Grain Facility Terminal at 15550 N. Lombard St., when the discharge occurred, according to DEQ.
Ballast discharges can bring invasive marine or freshwater organisms into Oregon waters, and thus are considered environmental hazards.
In a news release, the agency charged that the vessel owner “attempted to mask from DEQ the discharge of prohibited ballast water.”