Building Owners To Pay $70,000 To Settle Air Pollution Enforcement Action

According to a recent order of the Illinois Pollution Control Board, the owners of a building in Springfield, Illinois have settled an enforcement action for $70,000. 

The Attorney General had alleged that the owners violated state and federal clean air laws by: (1) causing or tending to cause air pollution; (2) failing to thoroughly inspect the building for the presence and location of asbestos-containing material (ACM) prior to commencing asbestos removal and disposal activities; (3) failing to notify the Illinois EPA of scheduled asbestos removal activities at the building at least 10 working days prior to commencing such activities; (4) failing to properly remove all regulated ACM (RACM) from the building before commencing planned renovation activities, which broke up, dislodged, and similarly disturbed the RACM; (5) failing to adequately wet all RACM and prevent damage or disturbance to the RACM during cutting or disjoining operations at the building; (6) failing to adequately wet and maintain wet all RACM and regulated asbestos-containing waste material at the building until collected and contained in preparation for disposal at a site permitted to accept such waste; (7) failing to have at least one representative at the building trained in the provisions of the NESHAP for asbestos and the means of complying with them; (8) failing to adequately wet and keep wet, containerize, and label all asbestos-containing waste material at the building, thereby causing or allowing the discharge of visible emissions to the outside air; and (9) failing to transport to a waste disposal site, or Agency-approved site that converts RACM and asbestos-containing waste material into nonasbestos material, and deposit as soon as practical all asbestos-containing waste material generated during asbestos removal activities at the building.

Stay tuned to the Illinois Environmental Law Blog for more news and developments.