Davy Crockett barge owner indicted on pollution charges


A federal grand jury indicted the owner of the derelict Davy Crockett barge on accusations of attempting to scrap the barge, and sparking a $20 million government cleanup.

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A federal grand jury indicted the owner of the derelict Davy Crockett barge on accusations of attempting to scrap the barge, and sparking a $20 million government cleanup on the Columbia River.

Bret A. Simpson, a scrap dealer from Ellensburg, Wash., is charged with two felony counts of Clean Water Act violations in December and January, one for unlawful discharge and one for failing to immediately report the pollution. 

The indictment alleges that Simpson purchased the 430-foot converted World War II Navy vessel in June 2010, knew it had fuel oil and diesel aboard, but did not remove the contamination before beginning to scrap it on the Columbia near Camas, Wash. 

The case has also spurred more oversight of other derelict vessels in the Northwest. That includes Barge 202, a derelict barge now parked downstream of The Dalles Dam that regulators believe Simpson helped scrap before it floated from its moorings and into the Columbia’s shipping channel in July.

Read more at OregonLive.com.

Read previous Oregon Business coverage of the cleanup.

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