Developer fined in asbestos case

A Menasha company has been fined more than $47,000 for violating Wisconsin asbestos laws.PJC Group LLC pleaded no contest last December to charges stemming from the redevelopment of the former Gilbert Paper Co. According to prosecutors, PJC bought the shuttered mill in 2004, with the intention of renovating part of it and tearing down the rest. PJC hired others to remove and sell scrap metal from the site. During a 2006 inspection, DNR workers saw workers cutting pipe insulation without taking safety precautions for asbestos. There were also piles of old insulation lying around the mill. Testing revealed asbestos in that insulation. The DNR also found that three boilers had been taken out. The removal disturbed material that had asbestos in it, without the area being inspected for asbestos, without the DNR being notified and without other safeguards being taken.A judge ordered PJC to pay $47,272 in fines, court costs and mandatory surcharges.