Unalaska, AK – The seafood company UniSea has agreed to pay nearly $2 million in state and federal fines because of ammonia discharges at its Unalaska processing plant.

An investigation by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation determined that UniSea had discharged ammonia, propylene glycol, crab waste, and other pollutants into Iliuliuk Harbor without a permit from 2005 to 2007 - a violation of the Clean Water Act. The company also failed to alert the EPA of two significant ammonia discharges in a timely fashion. According to the state's Department of Law, the two ammonia releases did not appear to pose a significant risk to human health and the environment.

In addition to agreeing to pay the $1.9 million in penalties, UniSea has been required to submit a comprehensive environmental compliance plan and has agreed to pay the costs of any clean-up. The company has also spent $1.6 million on upgrades to its refrigeration system, according to Human Resources director Chris Plaisance.

"In every single production facility, there is a small discharge of ammonia," says Plaisance. "But we just spent extra money and time to make sure that ours were state of the art."

UniSea's maintenance engineer director, Arthur Aliment, has also pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge for failing to report the release of a hazardous substance in a timely manner. According to court records, Aliment waited one month before alerting his supervisors of the ammonia discharge. He was sentenced to 45 days in jail, with time suspended.

UniSea is not the only area processor to have faced environmental penalties recently. Last year, Westward Seafoods was also fined $600,000 for failing to report excess ammonia stores at its Unalaska processing plant and for violating other provisions of the Clean Air Act and Community Right to Know Act. Kevin Feldes is chief of the criminal division at the United States Attorneys office in Anchorage, and he says that preventing these situations is a priority for his division.

"It's important that these provisions are enforced and that it sends not only a penalty, but a message of deterrence in terms of making sure that others understand the importance of compliance," says Feldes.

The State of Alaska joined the federal government in its complaint, and will not be pursuing separate action against UniSea.