The notice of violation, issued Wednesday, concerns a Nov. 7 pump failure that sent an estimated 600 gallons of wastewater into the bay and a Nov. 20 release whose volume is disputed. Ecology spokesperson Andy Wineke said the department and the state attorney general’s office are still investigating the size and scope of the later spill.

The mill has estimated that about 150 gallons escaped on Nov. 20. But two former employees say the release appeared substantially larger. Ian Dale, who worked the early shift the next morning, said he saw pulp and fiber along the shoreline and water that looked darkened by sludge. “Add a couple of zeros to that,” he said of the mill’s estimate.

Dale did not provide photographs or video of the spill. Mill spokesperson Randy Coté disputed his account, saying a plant manager who was there that morning saw no evidence of a release. The company maintains that its 150-gallon estimate is accurate and says the incident was limited in scale and did not involve a process area expected to pose significant environmental risk.

The Nov. 20 spill began when a hole opened inside the mill, allowing wastewater to flow through a 24-inch pipe into the bay. In a report to Ecology, the mill’s environmental manager estimated a flow of about 6 gallons per minute for 25 minutes. The mill said staff discovered the problem at about 8:41 p.m., stopped the flow within minutes and sealed the hole by early the following morning.

Former millwright John Tippins, who was working that night, has disputed the company’s account and provided photos and video that he says show a faster flow lasting for hours. He says the mill fired him after he raised concerns; the company says his termination was for unrelated performance issues. Experts who reviewed the materials for a separate investigation said they indicated a volume greater than 150 gallons, potentially hundreds of times higher.

Ecology did not independently investigate or test the water after the Nov. 20 spill, so regulators cannot identify precisely what entered the bay or determine whether wildlife was harmed. Wastewater containing fibers and other particles can deplete oxygen in water, posing risks to fish and other aquatic life.

The mill has received five water-quality penalties from Ecology since 2021. The department most recently fined it $734,000 for a separate series of spills earlier in 2026, including releases of alkaline chemicals into the mill’s wastewater lagoons. The agency has two years from the dates of the November incidents to impose fines or issue additional orders. It is also asking the public to report environmental concerns involving the facility.