MILTON-FREEWATER — Petco in Milton-Freewater faces a $2,700 fine from the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality for performing underground storage tank tests without a license.

DEQ announced this and seven other penalties in a news release Monday, March 28. The fines ranged from $600 to $15,000 for a variety of offenses, from cities not meeting requirements of their wastewater permits to a metal casting company improperly handling hazardous waste.

According to the state environmental regulation department, Petco in May 2021 conducted a line tightness and a line leak detection test on an underground storage tank without first obtaining a license from the DEQ, which is a violation of Oregon law.

Organizations or individuals must either pay the fines or file an appeal within 20 days of receiving notice of the penalty. They may be able to offset a portion of a penalty by funding a supplemental environmental project that improves Oregon’s environment.

Dylan Darling, DEQ spokesperson, reported Pecto is in discussion with the department about the penalty.