Federal investigations target Pamplin

The Level 3 fire that sent smoke billowing over Ross Island on July 20 may be the least of Robert Pamplin Jr.’s problems.

An email obtained by WW through a public records request shows that U.S. Department of Labor investigators are looking into the tangled finances of the shrinking Pamplin empire. (Pamplin Communications sold its 24 Oregon newspapers last month.)

As WW As previously reported, Robert Pamplin of Ross Island Sand & Gravel sold Ross Island to the Pamplin pension fund for $10.8 million in an unusual transaction in 2022, leaving the fund holding an asset that Pamplin had previously argued in court was worthless and that is still the subject of an expensive, unfinished reorganization plan. (The Labor Department regulates pension funds.)

On May 2, David Wehr, an investigator with the Seattle Department of Labor, wrote to the state requesting information about Ross Island Sand & Gravel’s obligation to post a $6 million bond to ensure completion of the reclamation project.

“We want to know if the bond was posted, how the bond amount was determined, and what liabilities exist if the bond is not posted,” Wehr wrote. The company failed to post the bond and faces a $2.9 million state penalty for doing so.

Representatives from DOL and Pamplin did not respond to requests for comment.

Bob Sallinger, executive director of Willamette Riverkeeper, has been of the opinion for years that Pamplin should hand Ross Island over to a responsible steward.

“This fire is an example of the neglect that is taking place here,” says Sallinger. “Dr. Pamplin made a lot of money mining on Ross Island. He owes it to the public to fix these problems and restore the community.”