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UTAH COMPANY PRESIDENT PLEADS GUILTY TO ASBESTOS OFFENSE
Release Date: 08/13/2001
Contact Information:
FOR RELEASE: MONDAY, AUGUST 13, 2001
UTAH COMPANY PRESIDENT PLEADS GUILTY TO ASBESTOS OFFENSE
Luke C. Hester 202-564-7818 / hester.luke @epa.gov
Brent Sumsion, President of Valley Asphalt Inc., pleaded guilty on July13 to negligent endangerment under the Clean Air Act for exposing his employees to asbestos The exposure originated from insulation removed from tanks at Valley Asphalt’s Spanish Fork, Utah facility and then buried at the Elberta site after sampling and testing found the insulation contained asbestos. Sumsion directed company employees to remove the buried materials, thus exposing the employees to asbestos. Asbestos is a substance which can cause a lung disease called asbestosis and mesothelioma, a type of cancer of the chest and abdominal lining as well as lung cancer. Sumison faces a maximum penalty of one year imprisonment and a fine of $100,000 when sentenced. This plea is the result of a joint investigation by EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division, the Utah Attorney General’s Office and the Utah Department of Air Quality. The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Salt Lake City.
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