Officials Concerned About Unprotected 2025 California Wildfire Workers

When contractors and other wildfire cleanup workers hauled asbestos-laced solid waste to landfills, they were not wearing protective masks or respirators, according to a July 2025 report. Even more troubling, Waste Management staff told the county inspector that mask-wearing was voluntary for employees.

Since learning about the asbestos-containing fire debris, local regulators have ordered the operators of Simi Valley Landfill to consult with safety professionals to determine the appropriate level of protective gear needed to protect against breathing in hazardous contaminants.

Waste Management officials said the company intends to leave the asbestos-containing waste in place, because attempting to excavate it could increase the likelihood that some of the toxic material would be released into the air. Nicole Stetson, district manager at Waste Management, urged the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Board to ask Environmental Chemical what actions it would take to prevent more asbestos from inadvertently being dumped there.

The landfill staff “followed all relevant procedures during the affected period and could not have prevented these events through any reasonable means,” Stetson wrote in a letter in April.

Waste Management is one of the contractors working for the Army Corps of Engineers during the 2025 California wildfire cleanup. So far, it has overseen the removal of fire debris from nearly 9,000 properties.

Nick Spada, a researcher with the UC Davis Air Quality Research Center, has collected dozens of ash samples from the burn scars and, in preliminary findings, found elevated levels of lead, arsenic, cadmium, and antimony in test materials.

Asbestos Remediation and Asbestos Exposure

For many years, environmental laws strongly encouraged asbestos remediation. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, there’s no safe asbestos exposure level. The remediation process usually includes:

• Detection: For property owners, a pre-1980 construction date is constructive knowledge (should have known) that the structure contained asbestos. An approved asbestos air test is actual knowledge of contamination. More on that below.
• Removal: Asbestos isn’t just any hazardous waste. A single microscopic fiber could cause mesothelioma or another disabling lung disease that’s usually fatal. Therefore, when contractors remove asbestos from walls or other areas, they must encase themselves in hazmat suits that protect them from head to toe.
• Disposal: Asbestos disposal may be the most expensive stage of the remediation process. Incineration is the cheapest and easiest way to dispose of toxic waste. But fireproof asbestos cannot be incinerated. Therefore, hazardous waste disposal companies usually break down asbestos into its chemical components, which are basically silicon and water.

Actual and constructive knowledge are premises liability terms. These terms matter because, under current law, property owners could be liable for asbestos exposure damages.

A 2024 chrysotile asbestos ban made the complete asbestos remediation process mandatory. Qualified remediation is the best way, and usually the only way, for property owners to avoid later liability lawsuits. Property owners could also be liable for damages if inexperienced contractors aren’t properly protected and the fly-by-night contractor has ceased operations.

Non-Litigation Options

California’s statute of repose derails most toxic exposure lawsuits if the building was more than ten years old. However, asbestos may fall under the narrow fraudulent concealment exception. Asbestos companies covered up the risks of this product for decades.

However, a non-litigation option may be a better option in states like California. Non-litigation options include workers’ compensation, VA disability, bankruptcy victim compensation funds, and Social Security Disability. These alternatives are usually easier to prove and resolve than civil cases. A nationwide asbestos lawyer should always review your case and determine the best possible option.

Contact a Hard-Hitting Attorney

Mesothelioma victims need and deserve significant compensation. For a free consultation with an experienced nationwide mesothelioma lawyer, contact the Throneberry Law Group. Virtual, home, and hospital visits are available.