In this undated photo provided by the EPA, a crew member uses a plasma torch to dismantle one of the retorts left on the J.H. Baxter site in Eugene. The U.S. government alleges that the retorts were used improperly to evaporate toxic wastewater into the air in 2019, violating federal environmental law.
Courtesy of the U.S. EPA
The federal government has issued criminal charges against the J.H. Baxter company and its president over its operation of its Eugene wood treatment plant.
For nearly 80 years, J.H. Baxter operated the facility on Roosevelt Boulevard before being shuttered in January 2022. Over the years, locals frequently complained of powerful odors — especially at night — and the plant was probed and fined for environmental violations by state and federal regulators.
In a six-page document filed in U.S. District Court in late November, the federal government leveled four charges against J.H. Baxter: illegal treatment of hazardous waste, violation of the Clean Air Act, and two counts of false statements to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) by company president Georgia Baxter-Krause.
“I think she deserves jail time,” Lisa Arkin, the executive director of Beyond Toxics, told KLCC. She said Baxter-Krause was a “bad actor” during the entire time she led the company.
“She is not planning — in my opinion — to solve any of the problems she and her company have caused for people’s property values and their health, and their economic stability,” added Arkin.
In its filing, first reported by Eugene Weekly, the government says J.H. Baxter illegally evaporated 1.7 million gallons of wastewater into the air. That’s the equivalent of roughly three Olympic-sized swimming pools. A DEQ spokesperson says J.H. Baxter chose to save nearly $35,000 by not replacing an evaporator, and renting storage tanks. It instead used several large vats, called retorts, to evaporate the wastewater, according to the government.
Furthermore, the government’s filing alleges Baxter-Krause told the DEQ that this practice was a “seasonal” one, primarily done during heavy rains and when the plant’s holding tanks were at capacity. She furthermore said no specific dates were recorded when this practice was done. The federal government said this was a false statement, adding that J.H. Baxter maintained detailed process logs and this evaporation occurred on 136 days from “at least” Jan. 2, 2019 through Oct. 6, 2019.
An aerial image provided by Beyond Toxics made with a drone shows the J.H. Baxter wood treatment facility in Eugene, Ore., in January 2022.
Courtesy of Beyond Toxics
In yet another statement deemed false by the federal government, Baxter-Krause told the DEQ that no other retorts, a type of industrial equipment, were used to evaporate listed hazardous waste besides its Retort #81. But investigators say Retorts #82, #83 and #85 were also used for wastewater evaporation.
Retorts are used to soak wooden poles and beams in creosote and other chemicals. Using them for other purposes — including the boiling off of hazardous chemicals and releasing them into the air — is regarded as a violation of the Resource and Conservation Recovery Act (RCRA) and the Clean Air Act, which were both defined in the federal government’s charges against J.H. Baxter.
In April, the U.S. Dept. of Justice announced it was looking into the actions of the J.H. Baxter company and Baxter-Krause, to determine if criminal activity had occurred. It also said the investigation also served as a notice to “potential crime victims,” and encouraged people to contact the DOJ if they felt their rights and well-being had been violated by the wood treatment plants’ operations. This was filed with an overview of the Crime Victims Rights Act (CVRA), defining a victim as “a person that has suffered direct physical, emotional, or pecuniary harm as a result of the commission of a crime.”
Seven months later, the federal government announced its four charges against the company and its president, in the Eugene division of U.S. District Court.
What these charges will ultimately lead to remains unknown, though fines and prison time are both possible. J.H. Baxter still has over $350,000 in environmental fines that it owes DEQ, which it initially pledged to pay at a hearing in July 2022. But it skipped the hearing and interest has added to the amount, which was already at $305,440 in May 2022.
Locals celebrate criminal charges, but remain apprehensive
Environmental groups and Bethel-area residents are pleased that the federal government has charged J.H. Baxter for criminal actions over its wood treatment plant operations.
Lisa Dion in an undated photo. Dion, whose husband has been diagnosed with cancer, told KLCC in July 2023 that she was concerned that his childhood spent growing up in the shadow of the J.H. Baxter plant may have caused his illness.
Brian Bull / KLCC
Lisa Dion said her husband, Eric, spent his first 20 years growing up in the Baxter plant’s shadow. This included playing in the waterways and dirt as a kid. Then just a few months after their wedding in May 2022, he came down with a rare form of cancer they’re convinced came from exposure to pollutants in the local air, water, and soil. Eric ended up staying in the hospital for seven weeks.
Dion said learning of the charges against J.H. Baxter and its president has filled her with many emotions.
“It’s really infuriating, to learn that people were knowingly breaking the law and jeopardizing the health of their neighbors,” she said. “I also felt validated because it’s like, ‘Yeah, this makes sense, why there’s so many people with health issues in the Bethel neighborhood.’ It’s good to know that there’s actually legal action being taken against J.H. Baxter and its owners.”
However, questions remain as to company president Georgia Baxter-Krause’s whereabouts, and what her assets are. Her LinkedIn profile puts her location as San Mateo, California, though the account looks inactive. Similarly, the company’s website also appears defunct.
Baxter-Krause did not respond to a request for comment from KLCC.
Like Beyond Toxics’ Arkin, Dion wonders if Baxter-Krause has hidden away money and other assets as a way to avoid paying fines.
“It’s upsetting, (and) it’s frustrating,” said Dion. She added that she and her husband now live in the River Road area, and that he is recovering after getting specialized treatment.
“He’s doing a lot better,” she said. ”We found a clinical trial drug for him about a year and a half ago. It’s been a game-changer for us. It’s basically given him his life back. He says he’s not 100% but it’s good enough, compared to where he was.”
Cleaning up long after shuttering
Meanwhile, the U.S. EPA continues its work dismantling and removing J.H. Baxter’s 35-acre tank farm. Besides old metal containers and pipes, half a million gallons of toxic chemicals are also being removed, a process the EPA expects to wrap up sometime in the summer of 2025. Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek has also signed on to a letter in support of having the campus turned into a Superfund site, which would allow federal money to go toward cleanup and renovation efforts.
In a release shared with KLCC, the EPA said it plans to begin asbestos abatement in December. These are for the tank farm areas on the north side of the site. During these operations, officials say precautions will be taken to assure no airborne asbestos leaves the site and affects the surrounding community and businesses. These efforts will include air sampling.
In this photo provided by the U.S. EPA, crews at the J.H. Baxter facility in Eugene, Ore., remove non-asbestos wrapped piping between container tanks ahead of asbestos abatement activities in December 2024.
Courtesy of the U.S. EPA
Outside the factory grounds, Bethel-area residents are coping with branches and entire trees being cut down, and having truckloads of soil — some going as deep as two feet — removed from their yards as a way to limit dioxin exposure. Testing of grounds around the Baxter site showed concerning levels of the toxins, which can create severe health problems with prolonged exposure. This has also led some residents with chickens to ask DEQ and EPA officials about the safety of eating eggs, and to limit activities such as gardening and having children play in their yards.
“It’s just robbing people of their livelihoods, just being able to go outside or take a walk in their neighborhood without worrying about health issues,” said Dion. “It’s not fair to the neighbors of J.H. Baxter.”
Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the year in which the U.S. EPA expects to finish removing the tank farm at the J.H. Baxter site. KLCC regrets the error.
Copyright 2024, KLCC.
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