Owner of California shipping company also must complete 200 hours of community service.
The owner of a California shipping company has been sentenced for hazardous materials violations.
Peiwen Zhou, the owner of AK Scientific Inc. in Union City, Calif., was sentenced in U.S. District Court, San Francisco, to five years of probation, a $40,000 fine and 200 hours of community service. Half of the 200 hours must relate to hazardous materials education and safety presentations in which Zhou discusses his crimes, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General.
Zhou pleaded guilty in December to illegally transporting hazardous materials and failing to properly declare imports of toxic substances.
According to the Office of Inspector General, Zhou admitted he failed to adequately train employees at his company about the requirements of the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act. As a result, on a number of occasions, AK employees shipped hazardous materials without properly labeling, marking and identifying the packages.
He also admitted that he prevented AK employees from complying with the Toxic Substances Control Act, the Office of Inspector General said. Specifically, he caused AK employees to fail to file TSCA import certifications when the company imported chemical substances into the United States, including one occasion when a substance was shipped to AK under a different name.
Peiwen Zhou, the owner of AK Scientific Inc. in Union City, Calif., was sentenced in U.S. District Court, San Francisco, to five years of probation, a $40,000 fine and 200 hours of community service. Half of the 200 hours must relate to hazardous materials education and safety presentations in which Zhou discusses his crimes, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General.
Zhou pleaded guilty in December to illegally transporting hazardous materials and failing to properly declare imports of toxic substances.
According to the Office of Inspector General, Zhou admitted he failed to adequately train employees at his company about the requirements of the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act. As a result, on a number of occasions, AK employees shipped hazardous materials without properly labeling, marking and identifying the packages.
He also admitted that he prevented AK employees from complying with the Toxic Substances Control Act, the Office of Inspector General said. Specifically, he caused AK employees to fail to file TSCA import certifications when the company imported chemical substances into the United States, including one occasion when a substance was shipped to AK under a different name.