Hewlett-Packard Fined for Asbestos Violation

Oregon state environmental regulators fined Hewlett-Packard Co. $9,600 for improper handling of asbestos by a contractor during a remodeling project last summer. A flooring contractor removing carpeting at the high-tech company’s Corvallis campus disturbed 456 square feet of underlying vinyl tiles that contained asbestos.

Workers for the contractor, Contract Flooring and Interiors, Inc. of Portland, may have released the asbestos fiber into the air by breaking up the tiles. Left uncovered, the material was allowed to accumulate. Once the danger was recognized, tiles were safely disposed of immediately.

Asbestos has been proven to cause lung cancer, mesothelioma, and asbestosis when the damaging fibers come into contact with lung tissue. Since state law allows that up to 80 percent of civil penalties in certain cases can be used to finance projects that benefit the environment, Hewlett-Packard may fund hazardous materials training to local firefighters.

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