Burlingame Business Owner Pleads Guilty to Illegally Disposing of Hazardous Waste

A San Mateo resident charged with disposing of hazardous waste by hiding it in a storage unit and leaving it there for facility staff to dispose of pleaded not guilty to a laundry list of related charges in a San Mateo County courtroom Friday.

Prosecutors say that Willis Unga, 63, had a large quantity of hazardous waste in the form of used and unused paint containers stored at his business, Unga Roofing at 960 David Road in Burlingame.

Unga was advised about the laws regarding paint storage by the San Mateo County Environmental Health Division in 2009, but despite multiple warnings investigators say the paint remained on the premises until 2011, according to prosecutors.

Then over a seven-day period in 2013, Unga allegedly rented three storage units at two separate facilities where he hid the paint, paid the first month’s worth of bills and then promptly stopped returning phone calls from facility staff, according to prosecutors.

On June 25, 2013, Unga rented two storage units at Bair Island Mini Storage in Redwood City. One week later on July 2, 2013, Unga rented an additional storage unit at Public Storage in Burlingame, according to prosecutors.

After opening Unga’s storage units, staff at both storage facilities found hazardous paint waste. The Bair Island facility also encountered other hazardous liquids like ammonia, industrial cleaning agents and coating stripper, according to prosecutors. The cleanup effort cost the two storage facilities a total of $88,880. That amount includes lost rental income and the expense of having a hazardous waste management company dispose of the paint, according to prosecutors.

Unga has been charged with two counts each of treating or storing hazardous waste at an unauthorized facility, disposing of hazardous waste at an unauthorized facility, depositing hazardous material on the property of another, commercial burglary and grand theft, according to prosecutors.

Unga remains in custody on $75,000 bail. His next court appearance has been scheduled for 1 p.m. April 1, and a preliminary hearing has been scheduled for 2 p.m. April 9.

Unga is being represented by San Mateo County’s Private Defender Program. His defense attorneys could not immediately be reached for comment.

--Bay City News

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