Criminal charges filed against the owner of a contaminated mill in Oregon are complicating the cleanup efforts at the site. The mill, located in Sweet Home, Oregon, is owned by a nonprofit foundation run by Eugene, Oregon businessman Dan Desler. Criminal charges have been filed against Desler and the foundation by the state of Oregon.
The EPA hopes to clean up the asbestos-laden debris that was left all over the site after Desler partially demolished several aging buildings at the mill between May 2007 and February 2008. The state is now suing Desler over the demolition, alleging criminal violations of pollution laws. However, because the current state of site provides vital evidence for the upcoming trial against Desler, there is some dispute as to exactly how the asbestos should be cleaned up.
“I’ve done removals where there is an investigation, but I’ve never done one where there’s an upcoming trial,” said Dan Heister of the EPA’s Emergency Response Unit. Heister will be coordinating the cleanup at the site. “We’re moving material that’s at the heart of the investigation,” Heister said.
Heister will take asbestos samples from the mill site, and Desler has been allowed to hire an asbestos abatement contractor to cover the remains of the partially demolished buildings with a tarp to prevent the asbestos from becoming airborne. Airborne asbestos particles can lodge in the lungs, leading to mesothelioma and lung cancer in some cases. The cleanup at the site will likely be financed by the EPA’s Superfund program.
Desler was arrested May 11 on felony air pollution charges. His court date is scheduled for August 3. Desler and his foundation, Western States Land Reliance Trust, are charged with seven felony counts of first-degree unlawful air pollution, a felony count of supplying false information to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality and a felony count of reckless endangerment.