COOS BAY — The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality issued two penalty notices to Coos County companies — an investment company and a contractor — among 35 issued statewide in August and September for alleged air quality violations, according to a release from the agency.
The penalties came from work being conducted at 229 South 10th Street in Coos Bay between July 2019 and January 2020. Granado Services, LLC, was doing work on the building owned by C4 Investments, LLC, according to DEQ documents, and both firms were penalized for the action.
The penalties allege that contractors improperly removed and stored floor and ceiling materials which contained asbestos without the appropriate permits. The work had the potential to release asbestos fibers, which can cause lung damage, into the air, the documents say.
The department gave Grenado Services a $32,000 penalty for doing the work, and C4 Investments a $10,400 penalty for hiring them to do it.
C4 Investments appealed the action to the agency, saying in an email to DEQ officials that the firm’s owners would be able to provide clarifying information about the incident.
“My aim is the same it has been from the point that I was informed of my errors concerning this entire situation, and that is to be compliant, respectful, and transparent,” owner Benjamin Huff wrote in the email, adding that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the business.
The appeal means C4 Investments will have a hearing before the agency before its penalty is finalized. Granado Services had until 20 days after receiving notice from the agency to do the same, which it hasn’t yet, according to DEQ staff.
