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Delivering Community News to Eagle, Star & W. Ada County MAY 2015
Volume 6 • Issue 5
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EPA Issues Order on ‘Lazy J’ Property Asbestos Contamination Neptune Says Property Clean-Up Should be Finished ‘This Week’
By Philip A. Janquart EAGLE – Local developer Ryan Neptune has hired Pacific Technologies Inc. (PTI) to clean up asbestos-contaminated debris from the partial demolition of several dilapidated buildings at the “Lazy J” property in Eagle. Neptune, of Gateway Parks LLC and Eagle Superparks LLC, told The Independent on April 20 that he was not sure how long the clean-up would take, but that it “should be done this week.” Neptune initiated the asbestos abatement 12 days after receiving an order by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to have it removed within 60 days, or face $37,500 in civil penalties per day per violation, in addition to criminal sanctions. The April 8 compliance order was issued through the EPA’s Office of Compliance and Enforcement in Seattle, Wash., under the Clean Air Act. It followed months of investigations involving Neptune and the property, a cluster of buildings that includes an old sports store and tavern. The site is located on Horseshoe Bend Road (old Highway 55) and Floating Feather Road, adjacent to Neptune’s new snowpark development and the city’s sports complex. Neptune purchased the property in January 2014 and applied for a permit to demolish the buildings on Feb. 19. He received the permit from Ada County Development Services the same day. A subsequent asbestos survey, conducted by Intermountain Construction & Abatement (ICA) in May, found that six of the eight buildings contained a total of 2,500 squarefeet of “regulated asbestos-containing material” (RACM), according to the EPA. The EPA says the particular type of asbestos found at the site is known as “friable” asbestos, referring to asbestos that becomes airborne when disturbed. The six buildings had an asbestos content ranging from 1 to 15 percent, according to ICA’s report, and was “found in vinyl floor tile, ceiling and wall plaster, sheetrock texture, window putty, and roofing materials.” The company provided Neptune with a $13,805 bid to abate the asbestos, but “respondent did not hire ICA to remove asbestos from the site,” according to the EPA’s 12-page order. Neptune told The Independent he did not hire ICA because he was waiting for bids from other companies. The buildings were still standing in June 2014, but a December 24 on-site visit by Ada County Development Services months later found that four buildings had been fully demolished and that a fifth had been partially demolished. A public complaint about demolition activity at the site was filed with the EPA in December 2014, prompting the EPA’s investigation.
PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID EAGLE, IDAHO PERMIT NO. 60
ECRWSS
POSTAL PATRON LOCAL
A heavy equipment operator began clearing debris at the old Lazy J property on Horseshoe Bend Road on Monday. A phone call confirmed it belongs to Pacific Technologies Inc., an asbestos abatement company.
On-site visits found asbestos-containing demolition debris lying exposed to the open air. The EPA says it warned Neptune he needed to follow specific protocol for notification and removal of the material, as well as implementation of interim safety precautions designed to protect the public. “On Feb. 25, 2015, EPA Region 10 spoke with Mr. Neptune and informed him that the asbestos National Emission Standard for Asbestos regulations apply to the demolition activity at the site; that advance notification is required for all demolitions, including demolitions in which the owner believes there is not asbestos present; that all RACM must be removed from any buildings still standing before demolition resumes; that asbestos-contaminated waste material must be kept wet until collected for disposal; and that disposal requirements apply to all asbestos-containing waste material picked up and removed from the site,” the EPA said. The EPA said Neptune never complied, ultimately resulting in the April order. The order requires Neptune to immedi-
ately begin “wetting” all the asbestos-containing debris until actual removal procedures take place, but an on-site visit by The Independent on April 17, 2015, did not reveal any obvious signs of “wetting” activities at that time. A crew with Pacific Technologies, however, showed up on the site the following Monday, on April 20. “I don’t know, they didn’t say how long it was going to take, but they said it should be done this week,” Neptune said. “They will handle everything. It’s in their hands right now, it’s in their contract and it’s all liable to them.” The Clean Up The EPA order mandates that, “respondent shall discharge no visible emissions to the outside air during the collection, processing (including incineration), packaging, or transporting of any asbestos-containing waste material unless a specified emission control and waste treatment method is used.” The contaminated material must be deposited in “an approved asbestos waste disposal site,” marking the material in
EHS Grads' Need for Speed, White Boyz Racing,
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“properly marked vehicles” with properly “maintained waste shipment records,” the order states. Neptune must also comply with asbestos emission control procedures for the remaining buildings, granting EPA inspectors full access to the property to take samples and photographs, and to interview any workers or representatives on the site. Finally, he has seven days following completion of the clean up to send the EPA a written notice describing the steps he took to comply with the conditions outlined in the order. The Ada County Landfill is set to receive the material, according to Ada County Board of Commissioners Chief of Staff Larry Maneely, who says the facility has been notified and is aware of the coming shipments. What’s next? The property is said to have been originally slated for use as storage and for possible retail facilities related to the snowpark and sports complex, but Neptune said he isn’t sure what he will do with it after the abatement has been completed. “I don’t know; it’s going to be undeveloped land for right now,” he said. Neptune told The Independent that, “the county asked me to buy it (the land),” and that, “the previous owner was put in jail over it because it was such a mess, as I understand.” Maneely disputed both claims. “No, the county did not ask him to buy it,” he said. “He bought it from a private owner as a supportive move to the city’s (Eagle’s) acquisition of county land. It sat there in limbo for several years since the previous owner died. His estate hadn’t done anything with the property, to clean it up or dispose of it. The previous owner died, he didn’t go to jail.” When asked if anyone from the City of Eagle asked him to buy the land, Neptune said that, “they talked about it and said it would be a good thing, just because it’s such a mess,” he said. “It’s been that way for 40 years.” He did not elaborate further. Continued on page 9
Mickie Park goes Day Trippin' to the Snake, pg. 19