Brisbane dad Myron Lichtnauer fined $60k for keeping asbestos in skip bin

A Brisbane dad has been dealt a hefty fine of $60,000 for keeping exposed asbestos in his skip bin for years.

Myron Ludwig Lichtnauer, 48, faced court for failing to remove asbestos.

A father-of-four is tens of thousands of dollars poorer for ignoring orders to properly dispose of asbestos which had been in his skip bin for “years”.

Myron Ludwig Lichtnauer, 48, of Ashgrove faced the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Thursday, February 23 for sentence after a days-long trial which saw him convicted of two counts of wilfully contravening an environmental protection order.

Lichtnauer, who has worked in asbestos removal his whole career, operated a business at the time which involved the transportation of waste.

He offended in January and February of 2020 when he brought the waste back to a lot of land and kept it in a skip bin he was responsible for, against the terms of his licence.

The contraventions followed a period of “disputation” between him and the relevant department over the activities he had been carrying out at his site.

The court heard it took the Brisbane man “years” to have the asbestos removed, with the skip bin finally “moved away” in July or August of 2021, and that he displayed a level of “hostility” about the obligations imposed on him.

Myron Ludwig Lichtnauer, 48, outside the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Thursday, February 23.

Counsel instructed by the Department of Environment and Science Michael Nicolson argued Lichtnauer obtained a commercial benefit by keeping the waste on his site, which defence lawyer Jeff Horsey said was negated by the fact he did eventually dispose of it.

“The commercial benefit evaporated the minute he disposed of it,” Mr Jeff Horsey said.

“It was there for a period but he has disposed of it at his cost.”

It is understood he was allowed to store the material at his site for five days, but he kept it for “years”.

Acting magistrate Rowan Silva accepted the cost of disposal “probably” negated any commercial benefit that accrued to him in the meantime.

“It seems that it was always his intention to remove (the skip bin), it’s just surprising that it took as long as it did …,” Mr Silva said.

Mr Horsey told the court his client was “emotional” and dealing with a number of personal issues when he offended.

Lichtnauer now works “extensive hours” as an asbestos removal and disposal adviser, a machine operator, and an asbestos removalist.

He is also the primary carer of his four children.

Mr Silva took into account how “very stressful” the trial would have been for Lichtnauer, and that he knew he was engaging in high-risk environmental activity by offending, when deciding an appropriate penalty.

He also considered Lichtnauer’s lack of a relevant criminal history and that he had been working in the asbestos industry for an extended period of time.

Lichtnauer was ordered to pay a single fine of $60,000 for both charges, as well as “investigation costs” of more than $3600 and legal costs of $6200. No convictions were recorded.