Sonoma State University fined $6,000 for asbestos-related violations

State occupational safety regulators have slapped Sonoma State University with nearly $6,000 in fines.

The Rohnert Park university failed to follow safety rules and procedures while workers last June removed some athletic tracks containing asbestos on the southeast end of campus, according to the California Occupational Safety and Health Administration. It cited the college for seven violations, including failing to provide workers with protective clothing and respirators and ensuring they properly handled and disposed of the outdoor track to minimize asbestos dust floating into the air. The university also didn’t offer workers safety training, Cal-OSHA said.

The issues ultimately were corrected during the inspection.

SSU officials said in a statement they quickly addressed the problems when they “unexpectedly discovered a low level of asbestos during removal of two long-jump tracks near the football field.” Four employees, including a student-worker, were notified about the potential asbestos exposure, and they declined to file an injury report or see a doctor, university officials said.

They said they tested the track for certain metals before the removal and didn’t find anything alarming, so they proceeded, treating it as “standard construction debris” until a worker alerted them to potential asbestos below the rubber matting.

“No asbestos was detected in the track or the rubber matting itself,” officials said in the statement.

It’s not the first time the university finds itself in trouble over asbestos. Sonoma State last year was ordered to pay $2.9 million in penalties after longtime employee Thomas Sargent sued the university, claiming he was forced to resign after repeatedly raising concerns about asbestos in Stevenson Hall and other buildings. A quarter of the penalty, which came on top of the $387,000 jury verdict awarded to Sargent, was split between faculty members and staff who worked in Stevenson Hall.

You can reach Staff Writer Eloísa Ruano González at 707-521-5458 or eloisa.gonzalez@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @eloisanews.