Writing Question -Conviction of Desler on Environmental Pollution

Writing Question -Conviction of Desler on Environmental Pollution

Notice that individual pollutants can be regulated through many different environmental statutes. Linked below are readings about the developer in Sweet Home, Oregon, that demolished an old mill that contained asbestos. Reading through all of the articles, you see reference to several of the environmental statutes that we have learned about in class. Besides the classification as a Hazardous Air Pollutant under the CAA, how else is asbestos regulated in this case? What other actions has the developer taken in violation of environmental laws?

• Desler indicted for Violating Clean Air Act (May 2011) (Links to an external site.)
• Desler Property: What Happens Now? (Jan 2011) (Links to an external site.)

This also brings us back to a discussion that we were having about mitigating the use of wetlands–what problems can developers run into when renovating old sites? What is the incentive when regulations are placed on old sites like this? Notice that he intended to turn this old mill into an environmentally friendly lodging/resort area. How ironic that he did not seek to protect the environment during the renovation of the site.

Mr. Desler was formally indicted on federal charges on May 23, 2011. On October 31. 2012, he pled guilty to negligent endangerment under the CAA for the release of a hazardous air pollutant (asbestos). He was sentenced to 3-years probation, 5 months of home arrest and 300 hours of community service.

Under CERCLA, the EPA declared the area a Superfund site and spent $1,589,752.52 on clean-up costs. Desler was ordered to play full restitution to EPA for the cleanup costs.

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