Puget Sound Asbestos Contractor Fined $200K
Seattle Environmental Services LLC faces willful and serious violations after misleading investigators and allowing employees to remove 3,000 square feet of asbestos without respirators.
- By Stasia DeMarco
- Feb 18, 2026
A Puget Sound asbestos removal contractor faces more than $200,000 in fines for knowingly exposing workers to hazardous conditions while telling state inspectors the site was safe.
The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) cited Seattle Environmental Services LLC on Jan. 26 for ignoring more than a dozen safety rules. Asbestos is a known carcinogen that can cause fatal diseases, including asbestosis, mesothelioma, and lung cancer. State law requires that only certified abatement contractors remove and dispose of the material.
When L&I inspectors arrived at a Bellevue home in September, the company owner reportedly stated that the work was a general demolition project and that samples tested negative for asbestos. The owner told inspectors that respiratory protection was optional.
However, the company could not provide evidence of the negative tests. Inspectors subsequently issued an Order of Immediate Restraint to stop all work on the site.
Evidence of violations
Despite the owner's claims, evidence at the jobsite indicated the contractor was treating the site as an asbestos project. Inspectors photographed yellow bags labelled "asbestos waste" filled with wallboard debris. A negative air machine was also found operating on the main floor.
When the contractor produced test results hours later, they confirmed that nearly 3,000 square feet of walls and ceilings contained asbestos. By that time, three workers had already removed the material without proper respirators or decontamination showers.
“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.”
Willful and serious citations
The employer later changed his account, claiming he mixed up the Bellevue job with another project. He worked with inspectors to ensure the debris was properly removed, and work resumed Sept. 29.
Seattle Environmental Services was cited for 10 willful serious, six serious, and four general violations. Under safety regulations, violations are "willful" when a company knows the requirements but fails to meet them. Citations are "serious" when a hazard could lead to injury or death.
The company has until midnight Feb. 20, 2026, to file an appeal.
About the Author
Stasia DeMarco is the Content Editor for OH&S.