A San Francisco-based company has settled with the federal Environmental Protection Agency over the handling of agricultural pesticides at four of its facilities, including one in Fresno County.

Wilbur-Ellis is a pesticide re-packager and distributor that faced compliance issues at its facilities in Helm, south of Kerman in Fresno County, as well as Willows and El Nido, California, and Farmington, New Mexico.

The violations were discovered through a series of inspections conducted from 2016 to 2018. Based on those inspections, EPA asserted Wilbur-Ellis had committed 14 violations under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), which regulates the safe distribution, sale and use of pesticides in the U.S.

Based on information gathered during the inspections, the EPA determined that Wilbur-Ellis held pesticides for sale in bulk containers with misbranded labeling that failed to include directions for use, failed to maintain required recordkeeping for repackaged pesticides and failed to store pesticides properly.

Wilbur-Ellis has corrected all identified compliance issues and agreed to a systematic evaluation of its compliance system and subsequent firmwide implementation of improvements to its management systems, and stopped repackaging pesticides altogether at three of the four facilities. In addition, the company will pay $73,372 in civil penalties.

“Pesticide companies must properly manage and label bulk agriculture pesticides to protect workers and the environment,” said John Busterud, regional administrator for the EPA’s Pacific Southwest office. “We are pleased the company is taking steps to ensure all of their facilities comply with federal pesticide requirements.”