TILLAMOOK, Ore. — Oregon environmental regulators have issued $63,750 in fines after an anaerobic digester at the Port of Tillamook Bay malfunctioned last year, causing 163,301 gallons of partially treated cow manure to overflow into a nearby creek.

The port, which owns the facility, was fined $19,800 by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality. Tillamook BioGas LLC, based in Raleigh, N.C., leases the digester and was fined $26,700.

DEQ also fined Regenis, of Ferndale, Wash., $17,250. Tillamook BioGas hired Regenis — a company that specializes in building and maintaining farm digesters — to operate the plant.

All three fines are now under appeal. Clay Hartman, project manager for Tillamook BioGas, said the company has spent months raising money to retrofit the digester and comply with DEQ requirements.

“We remedied the underlying conditions that caused the spill,” Hartman said. “We did even more than what they asked for, actually.”

The digester was originally built in 2012 and operated by the Port of Tillamook Bay on the northern Oregon coast until 2017. It takes manure from dairy farms in the area and captures methane and carbon dioxide emissions from the waste, used to create electricity.

The process, known as anaerobic digestion, works by heating the manure slurry in large tanks without oxygen, allowing bacteria and microorganisms to break down the material and release gases.

After sitting idle for two years, DEQ issued a new permit for the digester in late 2018 and the port leased the facility to Tillamook BioGas. Tillamook BioGas, in turn, hired Regenis in February 2019 for day-to-day operations.

On July 22, 2019, a faulty sensor caused one of the digester’s tanks to overflow, spilling 378,572 gallons of liquid manure overnight.

An estimated 163,301 gallons reached a storm water pipe that empties into Anderson Creek, south of the Tillamook River.

The Tillamook River flows into the Pacific Ocean at Tillamook Bay, where the Oregon Department of Agriculture says there are 10 licensed shellfish firms.

While DEQ and ODA quickly determined there was no public health risk at the bay, water quality measurements at Anderson Creek did show highly elevated levels of E. coli and water 500 yards downstream from the creek’s outfall was described as “brown and turbid.”

Additionally, DEQ said the spill killed approximately 100 sickleback fish, a small fish found in coastal waters, and caused other adverse impacts to the aquatic environment.

The digester does have an overflow pit equipped with an alarm and sensor designed to shut down manure transfer when levels are too high. But the sensor and alarm both were not working when the spill happened. DEQ alleges Tillamook BioGas acted “recklessly” because it did not follow permit requirements for maintaining and inspecting equipment prior to re-starting the digester.

Michael Grossman, a spokesman for Regenis, said the company made recommendations prior to recommissioning the digester that were ultimately not approved by the project’s previous managers.

“In our role, we feel like we did what we were supposed to do,” Grossman said. “We are sort of at the mercy of what the folks who write the check tell us.”

Hartman, who took over as project manager in December, said Tillamook BioGas has since installed new sensors, remote monitoring, on-site containment and replaced corroded panels inside the digester tanks. The digester has remained offline since the spill, though Hartman said they hope to begin gradually resuming operations at the end of July.

Tillamook BioGas, Regenis and the port remain partners in the project, Hartman said.

At capacity, the Port of Tillamook’s digester can handle 132,000 gallons of dairy manure every day. That’s the equivalent of manure from 8,800 cows. Hartman said the company is re-negotiating contracts with 25 farms around the Tillamook area.

“There is a real need in the area to have someplace for the dairy manure to go,” Hartman said.

Hartman said the company is not trying to shirk responsibility for the incident, but under new management and increased investment, he is confident they have the necessary safeguards in place.

“We’re all on board, and we’re not going to let it happen again,” he said.