California IN BRIEF : SAN FRANCISCO : Trial Ordered in Big Toxic Waste Case

A machine company has been ordered to stand trial on five felony counts of dumping thousands of tons of hazardous waste at an old Navy shipyard. San Francisco Superior Court Judge Charles James issued his ruling after an 11-month preliminary hearing, which is the longest conducted in an environmental case in California. The civil action against Triple A Machine Shop also is San Francisco’s first felony toxic pollution case, said prosecutor Steve Castleman. The prosecution is seeking fines of $5,000 to $10,000 for each day that hazardous waste remains on site at the Hunters Point Navy Shipyard, a 500-acre facility the company leased from the Navy from 1976 to 1986. According to estimates, it could cost $100 million to clean up the site.