Delaney
CONCORD, N.H. (Legal Newsline) - New Hampshire Attorney General Michael Delaney announced a penalty on Wednesday against a construction company and its owner for allegedly disposing of asbestos illegally in 2005 and 2006.
Summer and Winter Construction LLC and Walter Jensen, its owner, must pay a fine of $18,000, which represents ten times the amount the defendants received in revenue for the removal projects.
A trial against Summer and Winter Construction LLC and Jensen occurred in October and November. During the trial, the court ruled that the defendants had unlawfully performed the asbestos removal projects at two Concord residential construction sites in 2005 and 2006. The court found that Jensen knew of the asbestos regulations.
"The manner in which he removed and disposed of asbestos was illegal," the court said.
Jensen testified during the trial that while removal might not have conformed to the rules, the material had been properly disposed of at the Rochester-based Turnkey Waste Management Facility. The records and testimony of employees at Turnkey, however, allegedly showed that Jensen failed to notify Turnkey employees that they were engaging in asbestos disposal.
"(Jensen's conduct) was potentially injurious to public health," the court said.
The removal and disposal of asbestos is extremely regulated due to the known health risks related to the human exposure to asbestos.