CALDWELL, Idaho — The Environmental Protection Agency has fined the Darigold milk processing facility in Caldwell $318,000 for dumping excessive amounts of E. coli into the Boise River. The facility is used primarily for processing dairy products such as butter, cream, and evaporated milk.
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Although Darigold "was authorized to discharge pollutants associated with the industrial activity," EPA inspectors discovered that Darigold had violated terms and conditions relating to the concentrations of the pollutants they discharged. According to the agency's filing, inspectors took 3 measurements over two years and found that each time, Darigold's discharges had exceeded the limits for E. coli by nearly 6 times the allowable amount.
In addition to those infractions, the EPA concluded Darigold did not "implement adequate control measures" to "minimize pollutant discharges." The EPA also found a litany of other infractions including a "failure to monitor outfall" and "failure to conduct routine facility inspections during stormwater discharge." The filing was issued on September 4, 2024, and covers infractions from September 28, 2018, to April 7, 2022.
Darigold has agreed to pay the fine in question.