Washington Asbestos Contractor Fined $200K for Lying to Inspectors, Exposing Workers

A Puget Sound asbestos abatement contractor faces more than $200,000 in penalties after Washington state investigators found three workers had removed nearly 3,000 square feet of asbestos-containing walls and ceilings from a Bellevue home without wearing respirators or using decontamination showers.

The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries cited Seattle Environmental Services LLC on January 26 for 20 violations, including 10 classified as willful serious.

What Inspectors Found

When L&I inspectors arrived at the Bellevue residential site in September 2025, the contractor described the job as “just a general demolition project” and told inspectors that samples had tested negative for asbestos.

Inspectors saw a different picture:

• Yellow bags designed specifically for asbestos waste, filled with wallboard debris
• A negative air machine operating on the main floor with an exhaust tube running through a sliding door, equipment consistent with asbestos abatement, not general demolition
• The company could not immediately provide test results for the material being removed

L&I posted an Order of Immediate Restraint to stop work.

Hours later, the contractor produced test results confirming that the walls and ceilings contained asbestos. By that point, three workers had already removed the material without proper respiratory protection.

The employer then changed his story, telling inspectors he had “mixed up this abatement job with another.”

The Violations

L&I issued 20 citations on January 26, 2026:

Under Washington state law, willful serious violations carry a minimum penalty of $5,000 per violation and a maximum of $70,000.

“The contractor told workers they didn’t have to wear respirators, then told L&I there wasn’t any asbestos in the house, and they were wrong on both counts,” said Craig Blackwood, Assistant Director for L&I’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health. “This employer was cutting corners on safety.”

What Washington Law Requires

Washington’s asbestos abatement regulations (WAC Chapter 296-65) require:

• Workers must wear proper respirators during any asbestos removal
• Employers must provide decontamination areas with equipment rooms, showers, and clean rooms
• All material must be tested for asbestos before demolition or removal begins
• Asbestos-containing material must be properly contained and disposed of
• Employers must provide accurate information to L&I inspectors

None of these protections were in place when the three workers were removing asbestos-laden material at the Bellevue site.

The Health Risk to These Workers

The three workers who handled asbestos without respiratory protection face long-term health risks with no immediate way to assess the damage. Asbestos-related diseases, including mesothelioma, typically develop 20 to 60 years after exposure. There is no known safe level of asbestos exposure.

Construction and demolition workers are among the highest-risk occupations for asbestos-related disease. Approximately 1.3 million U.S. construction and general industry workers are estimated to be exposed to asbestos, primarily during renovation and demolition of older buildings.

Washington State Enforcement Pattern

The citation is part of an aggressive enforcement trend by Washington L&I against asbestos contractors. In 2024, a Lynnwood asbestos removal company was fined nearly $800,000 for 11 willful serious and two willful general violations. L&I moved to bar that company from future asbestos work in the state.