By ANN PORTAL
The Register-Guard

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has approved a plan calling for Spectra-Physics Inc. to create new wetlands to replace those filled when the company built in west Eugene in 1979.

The agreement does not yet clear the way for the company's proposed two-phase, $8 million expansion, but it is considered by company and city officials to be a first step in that direction.

Under terms of the agreement, the company will replace on a site near its west Eugene manufacturing plant the nearly 12 acres of wetlands that were filled without federal approval and on which two buildings were constructed.

Spectra-Physics hat agreed to create two acres of forested wetlands for each acre of forested wetlands that was filled. Scrub-shrub wetlands are to be replaced according to a ratio of 1 1/2 acre for each acre filled.

Gary Voerman, wetlands enforcement coordinator at the regional EPA office in Seattle, said no one is contending that Spectra-Physics intentionally filled the wetlands without approval. For that reason, no fine was considered, he said.

But at the same time, "a 12-acre fill is a substantial wetlands fill. We felt something was needed to redress that in some way because the habitat damage was great," Voerman said.

Wetlands are protected under federal laws because of their environmental importance.

Voerman said Spectra-Physics was "very cooperative" in working out a mitigation plan and that the outcome is a "good example" of how government and industry together can accomplish good things for the environment.

Charles Missar, Spectra-Physics facilities manager, said Thursday that he was "happy to confirm" the agreement. "Apparently there's more to come. We're still hanging in, going to continue on in the process," he said.

Spectra-Physics and the EPA learned of the unauthorized fill when the company, which manufactures optical scanners that read the bar codes on merchandise, applied to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1988 for a fill permit to allow expansion of the plant.

"We said, 'Whoa! Stop! There's a violation here and we want to resolve that before we even discuss future fill,' "Voerman said.

Now that a mitigation plan has been worked out for the earlier fill, the more recent application for a fill permit is under consideration, he said. The Army Corps hat set a March 28 deadline for public comment on that application.

Spectra-Physics is seeking approval of a plan to fill another 11 acres of wetlands on its current site for the expansion. New wetlands to replace those to be lost would be built on the same site as the mitigation for the earlier fill.

The city, the state and the company have agreed to split the cost, estimated at $652,000, three ways. Spectra-Physics is buying a 42-acre site that will be deeded to the city as an environmental park a short distance northwest of the company's plant on Terry Street.

The city, which encouraged Spectra-Physics to build on its west Eugene site without knowing that it contained wetlands, has not yet decided how it will cover its $217,000 share of the cost.

Voerman said that before his agency would be willing to recommend approval of the fill permit for the expansion, it wants Spectra-Physics to provide an analysis of alternatives to building on wetlands. The national goal is no net loss of wetlands.

Options might include constructing the new buildings on an upland site away from the current plant, he said. The company will be asked to show, taking into account a variety of factors, including finances, "that they couldn't do it (the expansion)" somewhere else, he said.

Missar said Thursday afternoon that he was not aware the EPA was going to require an analysis of alternatives and was not prepared to comment.