Edward A. Shaw of Largo, Fla., was sentenced Sept. 5 to serve four months in prison, four months in home confinement and pay $52,000 in restitution and fines for making false statements to the EPA and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment concerning an asbestos removal project. Shaw owns ESCM, Inc., an environmental consulting firm.

For over three years, Shaw and others were engaged in the removal of asbestos-containing material during the demolition of the Shallow Water Refinery near Scott City, Kan. The removal involved illegally failing to: (1) properly wet the asbestos-containing material beforehand, (2) provide workers with protective clothing and (3) properly dispose of asbestos containing-material. Improper removal of asbestos can cause asbestos fibers to become airborne.

Inhalation of airborne asbestos fibers by workers can cause lung cancer, a lung disease known as asbestosis, and mesothelioma, a cancer of the chest and abdominal cavities. The case was investigated by EPA's Criminal Investigation Division in Washington, D.C. with the assistance of EPA's National Enforcement Investigations Center in Denver, EPA Region 7, and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. It was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's office in Wichita.