CA Pesticide Companies To Pay $3 Million Hazardous Waste Dumping Settlement

SONOMA COUNTY, CA — Three pest control companies accused of improperly disposing of hazardous waste and failing to secure customer records have agreed to pay more than $3.15 million to settle a complaint brought by more than a dozen district attorneys' offices.

Clark Pest Control of Stockton, Orkin Services of California, and Crane Pest Control settled complaints that they violated state laws by illegally disposing pesticides and hazardous waste into trash bins that were destined for dozens of landfills.

The settlement also resolves claims that the companies discarded customer records containing private information.

The investigation, led by the district attorneys of Contra Costa and San Mateo counties, was initiated in 2021.

From March 2021 to February 2022, investigators statewide conducted undercover inspections of 40 dumpsters at 22 separate Clark and Orkin facilities.

“The Contra Costa County District Attorney's Office is dedicated to ensuring companies are held accountable for conduct that endangers the environment and our citizens,” District Attorney Diana Becton said. In addition to Contra Costa and San Mateo, the suit included Alameda, Santa Clara, Monterey, San Joaquin, Solano, Sonoma, Yolo, Orange, Riverside, San Diego, and Ventura counties.

The inspections uncovered thousands of unlawfully disposed of items, including pesticide containers with liquids, powders, foams, baits, pellets, and aerosol sprays, as well as hazardous batteries, e-waste, hand sanitizers, adhesives, and cleaning solutions, according to a statement by the Contra Costa District Attorney's Office.

Inspectors also found thousands of privacy law violations, including customer records that — instead of being shredded, or rendered unreadable — were dumped in regular trash, including service orders, contracts, invoices, and route reports containing personal information, according to the Contra Costa District Attorney's Office.

After prosecutors notified Clark and Orkin of the violations, the companies cooperated and updated their policies and procedures to ensure proper waste management and protect customer privacy in California, the district attorney's office said.

The $3.15 settlement orders Clark, Orkin, and Crane to pay $2 million in civil penalties, $400,000 in environmental projects, and $400,000 in credit for supplemental environmental compliance measures. The settlement also includes $333,000 in investigative costs.

A spokesperson for Orkin said the company had worked with investigators to resolve the issues and was taking steps — now also required by the settlement — to correct the violations.

"Since being notified that a few of our brands in California were being investigated, we quickly began working cooperatively with the District Attorneys' offices. Since that time, we have improved our operational and service processes and policies to better reflect the highest industry standards," a company spokesperson said.

Since being notified of the investigation, Orkin "quickly began working cooperatively with the District Attorneys’ offices," according to a prepared statement by the company.

The three companies agreed to pay more than $2 million in civil penalties, as well as third-party auditors to monitor a portion of their dumpsters. They will be required to make reports of the audits, train employees on legal waste disposal, and pay for thousands of hours of audit and compliance-related measures, the district attorney's office said. The settlement also includes $400,000 for supplemental environmental projects.