YORK COUNTY, Pa. (WHP) — The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection is asking a court to jail the owner of a York County salvage yard accused of polluting surrounding waterways for years.
Legal action against J&K Salvage was already underway when a large fire broke out Feb. 25 and caused oil containers to leak into the Codorus Creek. That spill prompted weeks of cleanup and testing of water samples.
READ MORE | Legal battle over pollution at J&K salvage continues after massive fire
Scene of the fire at J&K Salvage in York County, which dispatchers said broke out just before 2 p.m. Feb. 25, 2026, in the 1000 block of Kings Mill Road. (Courtesy of York County PA Office of Emergency Management)
On Tuesday, the DEP issued an order to the owners and operators of the salvage yard, which is located at 1099 Kings Mill Road, to immediately stop accepting and processing waste and to start removing waste already at the site, according to Secretary Jessica Shirley.
Shirley said the DEP also notified the Commonwealth Court that J&K Salvage has not complied with a 2024 court order, and in order to force compliance, the DEP asked the court to jail the owner, impose daily fines and impose a judgement for a previous penalty.
“The actions of J&K Salvage’s ownership over the years have shown that they are not willing or capable of complying with Pennsylvania’s laws and regulations, and DEP will always hold polluters accountable,” Shirley wrote in a statement Thursday. “We will not tolerate flagrant disregard of the laws and regulations that exist to protect public health and Pennsylvania’s air, land, and water. DEP has ordered J&K to shut down and clean up their operations, we are going to court to get them to comply with those orders.”
In addition to stopping operations and getting rid of waste already at the facility, the DEP’s order requires J&K Salvage to provide the DEP weekly waste receipts and an updated Preparedness, Prevention and Contingency plan addressing pollutants from the salvage yard that can get into stormwater runoff.
Shirley said the DEP also notified the court in a separate filing that Harry J. Darrah, the owner of J&K Salvage, has still not complied with an order directing him to address violations regarding its automobile salvage and scrap metal operations. The DEP says that in 2024, the court found Darrah in contempt for failing to comply with a 2021 court order, after which the court directed him to perform corrective actions.
“The Commonwealth Court’s 2024 Order states it will issue a bench warrant for Harry J. Darrah III to report to the York County Jail System and serve 45 days of incarceration if the DEP certifies Darrah has not complied with its orders,” Shirley wrote.
In addition, the DEP asked that Darrah pay a civil penalty of $40,750, along with penalties of $250 a day for his failure to purge contempt in that case.
The DEP said its order is related to the lack of compliance to the previous court order, not in relation to the most recent fire.