KINGSTON – An illegal sold waste case in Ulster County has concluded after all responsible parties were brought to justice. The trucking company was fined over $112,000 for its actions.
State Department of Environmental Conservation Solid Waste Task Force members observed trucks disposing waste at a residence in the Town of Rochester back in May 2017.
The officers followed dump trucks filled with debris from an illegal construction and demolition processing facility on Long Island and witnessed the trucks dumping large quantities at a private residence.
The officers pulled the trucks over and called in the regional Bureau of Environmental Crimes investigators and staff from DEC’s Division of Materials Management to assist.
Debris samples were collected, the premises were searched, and interviews were conducted leading to the arrests of the dump truck drivers charging them with unlawful disposal of solid waste in excess of 10 cubic yards as a misdemeanor.
All drivers later pled guilty to lesser charges and each paid a $1,500 fine.
The debris samples revealed coal ash and slag, which is only permitted at licensed landfills. Chemical analysis also showed the presence of acutely hazardous substances that violated environmental conservation law.
The trucking company, Modern Leasing, Inc., operating as Dump Masters Services, was charged with endangering public health, safety and the environment as a felony, and several misdemeanor counts of unlawful disposal of solid waste in excess of 70 cubic yards and 10 cubic yards.
Modern Leasing, Inc. recently pled guilty to the felony charge and two counts of unlawful disposal of waste and was ordered to pay the maximum fine for each, totally $112,500.
