Newsroom
All News Releases By Date
PA MASSACHUSETTS MAN INDICTED FOR ILLEGAL ASBESTOS REMOVAL
Release Date: 12/05/97
Contact Information:
FOR RELEASE: FRIDAY, DECEMBER 5, 1997
MASSACHUSETTS MAN INDICTED FOR ILLEGAL ASBESTOS REMOVAL
On Nov. 25, Stephen P. Draper of Woburn, Mass. was indicted in U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire in Concord on three counts of violating the Clean Air Act for illegal removal and disposal of asbestos. The charges allege that during the fall and winter of 1992, Draper illegally removed and directed the removal of dry and crumbly asbestos insulation from equipment housed in the former Johns-Manville Corp. manufacturing facility in Nashua, New Hampshire, which was the scene of a $20 million cleanup effort conducted by EPA, state and local officials. Specifically, Draper is accused of failing to wet the asbestos, failing to keep it wet during removal and failing to dispose of it legally. Inhalation of airborne asbestos fibers can cause a lung disease known as “asbestosis” and lung cancer in humans. If convicted, Draper faces a maximum sentence of up to 15 years imprisonment, up to $750,000 in fines or both. The case was investigated by EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division and the Nashua, N.H. Fire Department.
R-169 ###
Search this collection of releases | or search all news releases
View selected historical press releases from 1970 to 1998 in the EPA History website.
