Whole Foods has been ordered to pay more than $1.6 million for mishandling hazardous waste throughout California.

According to the district attorneys' complaint, Whole Foods, Mrs. Gooch's Natural Food Markets and WFM-WO Inc. mishandled hazardous wastes and materials throughout the state over a five-year span. The hazardous wastes and materials included batteries, ignitable liquids and other flammable, reactive, toxic materials.

KEYT has more details:

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. - A Yolo County Superior Court Judge has ordered Whole Foods Inc. to pay more than $1.6 million for mishandling hazardous wastes and materials throughout the state of California.

Judge Thomas E. Warriner has ordered Whole Foods Market California Inc. and two related entities to pay $1,643,500 as part of a settlement of a civil environmental prosecution.

More than $200,000 of this amount will support various environmental projects, including the prosecution of environmental violations in the counties that lack the expertise and resources to prosecute these types of violations.

Read the full article here.