Rlr investments says epa asbestos claims are untrue

Last week, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency announced that Wilmington-based company RLR Investments, LLC would pay a large fine for violating state environmental asbestos standards. RLR Investments, LLC paid a penalty of $227,700 for violation of Ohio’s asbestos emission control standards. The violations occurred in downtown Dayton at a property known as the Urban Resort, according to the Ohio EPA. The case involves the largest civil penalty ever collected by Ohio State for asbestos-related violations. Ohio EPA Director Chris Korleski said in relation to the incident, “The asbestos regulations are intended to protect public health, which is why we take violations very seriously. We urge anyone involved in building demolition or renovation to understand the asbestos requirements and follow them to the letter.” This week, however, RLR Investments issued a statement via its Associate General Counsel, Daniel J. Brake, refuting the claims made by the EPA. “The claims of the Ohio EPA in the news release are false, and are contrary to the clear terms of the Consent Order filed with the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas. RLR believes that the claims brought by the Ohio EPA were without merit, and RLR only agreed to settle the case for the stated amount to avoid the significant cost of litigation with the State of Ohio.” “It is important to note that neither RAPCA (Regional Air Pollution Control Agency) nor the Ohio EPA issued a single citation to RLR Investments during the renovation of the Urban Resort. RLR retained one of the premiere asbestos remediation contractors in the state of Ohio to handle all remediation activities at the location. At no time was a notice of violation or citation issued to the remediation contractor.” According to the RLR statement, the statements made by the Ohio EPA are “false under the clear terms of the Court’s Consent Order and Final Judgment Entry…and directly contrary to the state’s express acknowledgment…that “the Court has made no finding or determination of any wrongdoing or civil liability on the part of Defendant and Defendant denies any violations at the Urban Resort property…” In short, RLR Investments claims that it settled with the EPA to avoid paying litigation fees, and that therefore the EPA has no right to state that RLR was guilty of any asbestos-related wrong-doing. The company’s statement closes with a warning: “RLR Investments took on the Urban Resort project as a good-will gesture to the city of Dayton…with the aggressive tactics of the Ohio EPA, investors like RLR are not likely to take on any such good-will project anytime soon.” (Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News)