Employees Illegally Dump Asbestos Waste near School

February 13, 2007 - Two Macomb County, Michigan men are accused of dumping hundreds of gallons of asbestos waste near a middle school and housing subdivision after their boss told them to “take care of” the debris.

The Macomb Daily reports that Sean V. MacLean and Stephen Day and their boss, Dennis P. Szulborski, all appeared for a pre-trial arraignment before Macomb County Circuit Judge Mark S. Switalski on charges of improper release and/or false statements about a hazardous substance and misdemeanor charges.  Each entered not guilty pleas or stood mute before the judge during the hearing.    

The waste was first discovered by a resident of the subdivision in question and additional debris near the school was discovered by the Macomb County Road Commission while they were working at a nearby project.

The newspaper account states that a security videotape of the facility showed employees who appeared to be unloading or moving the barrels, believed to be Day and MacLean. Szulborski, the company president, is not seen on the tape but was allegedly aware of the dumping.

Macomb County Health Department workers found several 55-gallon drums and many more 5-gallon containers, holding a total of 540 gallons at one location and 265 gallons at the other. They were able to trace markings on the containers to Szulborski’s Company, Allied Environmental.  Because the waste was so close to the school, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality was called to immediately dispose of the barrels.  They hope to recoup the $10,000 removal costs from Szulborski.

All three men face up to five years in prison and several hefty fines if convicted.