MassDEP Fines Contractor for Asbestos Violations

Rick Denoncourt Carpentry Inc., a Chicopee-based contractor with a General Contractor license in MA, has been fined $10,200 by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) for violating state asbestos regulations.

The violations were noticed in November 2009 during MassDEP’s complaint investigation of a residential building renovation situated in Holyoke. According to the complaint, asbestos thermal system insulation removal had been carried out without implementing the proper asbestos management and disposal procedures.

Rick Denoncourt Carpentry has reached a settlement agreement with MassDEP, in which the company agreed to pay a fine of $10,200. $7,200 of the fine was suspended for one year provided that the company remains abide by the state asbestos regulations.

Michael Gorski, the director of MassDEP’s Western regional office in Springfield, said failure to identify and properly remove asbestos-containing material before renovation or demolition process poses a public safety hazard.

“Such actions can result in significant penalty exposure, and higher clean-up, decontamination, disposal and monitoring costs,” Gorski said.

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