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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Eye On Boise

ITD fined for demolishing asbestos-laden building without precautions, for 2nd time in a year

Here's a news item from the Associated Press: BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The Idaho Transportation Department has agreed to pay a $52,000 fine after demolishing an asbestos-containing building in northern Idaho and potentially exposing the public to the cancer-causing fibers. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced the agreement Thursday involving the November demolition of the state-owned building in Priest River. The federal agency says the state agency failed to do an asbestos survey before the demolition and only learned of the demolition after receiving a public complaint. An inspector checked the debris pile and found materials with up to 55 percent asbestos. In a similar event, the Idaho Transportation Department agreed to pay a $57,000 fine in June 2014 after demolishing an asbestos-laden building in the eastern Idaho city of Rigby. Asbestos causes lung cancer and other diseases.



Betsy Z. Russell
Betsy Z. Russell joined The Spokesman-Review in 1991. She currently is a reporter in the Boise Bureau covering Idaho state government and politics, and other news from Idaho's state capital.

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