Attorney General Schwalb Holds Pest Control Company Accountable for Polluting District with Toxic Chemicals

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Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb today announced that Kenmore Pest Control & Termite Services LLC (Kenmore) will pay $137,000 in penalties and environmental clean-up costs to resolve allegations that it repeatedly and illegally applied pesticides, endangering District residents and damaging DC's natural resources. Additionally, Kenmore will enter a three-year probationary period through which the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) can ensure swift consequences for future violations. The company's employees are also barred from applying pesticides until they are properly trained.

Kenmore is a Maryland-based pest control company that regularly works in the District and employs approximately 20 people. Under DC law, pest control businesses like Kenmore must be registered with the District's Department of Energy and Environment, and employees overseeing or performing pesticide application must be licensed as applicators or registered as technicians. Registered pest control businesses have the ability use certain pesticides, known as "restricted use" pesticides, that are not available to the general public because they are highly toxic or because they must be applied with special care.

OAG's investigation revealed that Kenmore violated DC law by:

• Improperly applying highly toxic pesticides around apartment complexes in Ward 1 and Ward 7:DC inspectors observed Kenmore improperly applying restricted use pesticides around Mayfair Mansion Apartments, a Ward 7 apartment complex with over 400 units, and Columbia Heights Village, a Ward 1 400-unit apartment complex. At Columbia Heights Village, a dangerous pesticide was applied to areas accessible to children and pets. At Mayfair Mansion Apartments, Kenmore applied a chemical harmful to humans and highly toxic to birds, fish, and wildlife. The District was forced to intervene to protect the environment and human health, incurring over $12,000 in expenses cleaning up the contaminated soil.
  
• Allowing unqualified employees to apply pesticides for years:According to Kenmore's records, from 2019 to 2022, employees without legally required licenses or registrations applied restricted use pesticides.
  
• Misleading DC consumers:Kenmore misled consumers, saying that it was complying with DC law and claiming that employees were "fully licensed" and "certified" on its website and in service agreements, when those statements were not true.

Under the terms of the settlement agreement, Kenmore must:

• Pay $137,000 in penalties and clean-up costs.
  • $125,000 in civil penalties to DC.
  • $12,006 to cover the District's costs to clean up environmental contamination at the Mayfair Mansion Apartments.
    
• Retrain employees before they apply pesticides: Kenmore's current employees are barred from applying pesticides until they receive eight hours of continuing education training in pest management from a training course approved by DC, Maryland, or Virginia.
  
• Comply with all District laws moving forward:Kenmore must comply with all District laws, including environmental regulations, pest control licensing requirements, and consumer protection laws. The company has also agreed to pay stipulated penalties for violations of the District's consumer and environmental protection laws that occur within three years of the effective date of the agreement, which will enable swift enforcement if the company continues to violate the law.

A copy of the settlement is available here.

A copy of the legal complaint is available here.

This matter was handled by AAG Wesley Rosenfeld.

Over the past 10 years, OAG has secured nearly $120 million to promote environmental justice in the District- nearly half of which has been secured since January 2023, when AG Schwalb's administration began, including a $57 million recovery from Pepcofor contaminating the Anacostia River for decades.