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Friday, March 29, 2024

Koster sues over asbestos removal

Koster

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (Legal Newsline) - Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster announced on Wednesday that he has filed a lawsuit against a St. Louis resident for allegedly violating the Air Conservation Law of Missouri during demolition activities.

Robert Collins' three violations allegedly occurred when he was removing asbestos-containing building materials from a building on Page Avenue in St. Louis as part of a renovation.

The suit alleges that Collins failed to inspect the building for asbestos prior to beginning demolition, failed to have measures in place to keep the airborne dust from getting outside and failed to notify the Department of Natural Resources 10 days in advance of the scheduled demolition.

Asbestos poses a health threat, Koster said, because of its propensity to easily break into particles that are small enough to be inhaled.

"Missouri's Air Conservation Law was enacted to protect both citizen's health and our environment," Koster said, "The attorney general's Office will not look the other way when these violations occur."

Koster requested that the court issue permanent and preliminary injunctions that would prohibit Collins from further violating the Missouri Air Conservation Law. In addition, he asked the court to assess a $10,000 penalty for each day that the defendant was in violation of the law and to order that the defendant pay for court costs.

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