PA processor gets green light to reopen limited operations but must pay fine

A Pennsylvania hemp-processing center that was closed after repeat air-quality warnings from the state has been fined and given permission to reopen on a limited basis.

Under the terms of a Dec. 24 agreement with the state, the Jeannette facility owned by Patriot Shield Security will be fined $29,000 for air-quality violations, according to the Tribune-Review in Western Pennsylvania.

The new agreement, which comes after several problems since it opened without a permit in September, will allow Patriot Shield to store and process hemp. The company will not be permitted to carry out hemp drying, though that aspect of the business is mostly seasonal.

Patriot Shield, a Colorado-based security and transportation company that serves both hemp and marijuana clients, must pay $5,000 within 60 days, with five more payments of $4,000 at the end of each month starting March 31.

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection ordered the facility to cease operations in late November after a series of odor complaints.

Patriot Shield has until March to send the agency an application to dry hemp in 2020, including an odor-control plan.

More details about the facility’s agreement to be allowed to reopen are available here.