WHAT IS ASBESTOS?
Asbestos generally comes in three types:
- chrysotile known as "white" asbestos
- crocidlite known as "blue"asbestos
- amosite known as "brown" or "grey" asbestos
When dealing with asbestos it's condition is generally referred to as bonded asbestos-containing material (bonded asbestos) contains a bonding compound reinforced with asbestos fibres; or friable asbestos-containing material (friable asbestos) is unbonded asbestos-containing material that, when dry, is or may become crumbled, pulverised or reduced to powder by hand pressure.
Bonded asbestos can be found in products such as asbestos cement sheeting commonly used in building materials between 1940s to the late 1980s.
Other bonded asbestos products include:
- profiled sheets used on roofs and walls and flat sheets in flashings
- imitation brick cladding
- water or flue pipes
- plaster patching compounds
- textured paint
- vinyl floor tiles
Friable asbestos is easily crumbled or reduced to powder by hand.
Common forms of friable asbestos materials include:
- sprayed on fireproofing/soundproofing/thermal insulation
- acoustic plaster soundproofing
- thermal insulation (not sprayed on).
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WHERE IS ASBESTOS FOUND?
Materials that contain asbestos can be found in buildings, workplaces and dwellings built before 1990. Buildings, workplaces and dwellings that have been built after 1990 can also contain asbestos.
Asbestos can be difficult to identify and it is often impossible to confirm it's presence by a visual inspection. The only way to be certain whether asbestos is present is to have a sample of the material analysed by an accredited laboratory.
You should never attempt to sample anything you believe may contain asbestos. It is very dangerous and should only be done by a competent person and tested in an accredited laboratory.
If material is suspected of containing asbestos and you do not have it tested you MUST treat is as containing asbestos by law. For example, if there is reliable manufacturer information on a product, such as a label stating something contains asbestos, or if it is a product of a type and age that typically contains asbestos you can and should presume it contains asbestos.
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PROHIBITED ACTIVITY
The Workplace Health and Safety Regulation 1997 prohibit the use of certain tools and work methods when working with ACM as they can generate dangerous airborne asbestos fibres.
These prohibitions include the use of:
- high-speed abrasive power and pneumatic tools
- high-pressure water cleaners
- compressed air or abrasive blasting
- household vacuum cleaners even if they have a HEPA filter. Only vacuum cleaners specifically designed for safe work with asbestos may be used.
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HEALTH ISSUES
Breathing in asbestos fibres has been linked to three respiratory diseases, all of which can be fatal:
- Asbestosis is a chronic lung disease that can lead to respiratory impairment and to diseases such as lung cancer;
- Mesothelioma is a cancer in two forms - pleural which is a tumour of the lung; and peritoneal, which is a cancer of the abdominal cavity;
- Lung cancer caused by asbestos cannot be distinguished from those cancers that are caused by other agents such as tobacco smoke.
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DOMESTIC ENVIROMENT
In Queensland from 1940 until the late 1980s bonded asbestos was commonly used in the manufacture of asbestos-cement corrugated and flat sheets (fibro) for roofing and walls. Undisturbed or painted fibro does not generally pose a health risk.
Thermal or acoustic insulation used in homes may have also contained friable asbestos, the easily crumbled form of asbestos that can be reduced to powder by hand.
Friable asbestos is extremely dangerous and must only be removed by a certified asbestos removalist (holding either a current licence for asbestos removal work issued between 1 February 2002 and 31 December 2005 or an ""A"" class licence for asbestos removal work issued from 1 January 2006).
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ASBESTOS IN THE WORK PLACE
Asbestos was used in a variety of workplaces from the 1940s up until the late 1980s when the dangers to health due to exposure became more widely acknowledged. Asbestos is found in asbestos cement sheeting, as an insulator on pipes and in buildings, as a fire retardant in textiles and as a filtering material in the chemical and food industries.
Workplaces are required by law to identify and manage asbestos, and to follow the ASBESTOS REMOVAL CODE.
The ASBESTOS MANAGEMENT CODE requires that owners of workplaces must ensure all asbestos-containing materials (ACM) in their workplaces is identified, as far as practicable.
An owner must:
- identify the locations of all asbestos-containing material (ACM) and determine whether any inaccessible areas are likely to contain ACM
- identify the types (e.g. asbestos cement sheet, asbestos lagging on pipes and flues, asbestos-containing material gaskets in plant or machinery) and condition (i.e. damaged or intact) of ACM.
Only people who are competent in the identification of asbestos-containing materials are permitted to carry out these tasks.
Asbestos identified in the workplace must be recorded in a Register of Asbestos Containing Material.
Warning signs and labels to identify ACM in the workplace should also be used to ensure that the asbestos is not unknowingly disturbed without the correct precautions being taken.
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OBLIGATIONS
The Workplace Health and Safety Regulation 1997 requires owners of buildings and structures that are workplaces to comply with the requirements of the asbestos management code.
An owner is defined to include a person who has control of or manages a workplace and a lessee, licensee, mortgagee in possession and a receiver or company administrator.
Owners of workplaces have obligations that may be summarised as follows:
- develop and implement and maintain an asbestos management plan
- investigate the premises for the presence or possible presence of asbestos-containing materials (ACM)
- assess the condition of any ACM that are found and the associated asbestos risks
- develop measures to remove the ACM or otherwise to minimise the risks and prevent exposure to asbestos
- ensure the control measures are implemented as soon as possible and are maintained as long as the ACM remain in the workplace.
Owners are also required to:
- consult with any person who may be affected by the presence of ACM;
- such as employers, workers, contractors and occupants.
- provide information and training for workers, contractors and other people who may come into contact with ACM.
The training may include procedures to be followed to prevent exposure, the types and locations of asbestos and the health risks of asbestos.
All workplaces built before 1 January 1990 should already have an asbestos register, and safety policies and procedures for friable asbestos. By 1 January 2008 all workplaces must comply with the asbestos management code, which specifies obligations in relation to both friable and bonded asbestos material.
An asbestos management plan helps owners of workplaces comply with asbestos prohibitions and to prevent exposure to airborne asbestos fibres.
The plan should set out clear aims, stating what is going to be done, when it is going to be done, and how it is going to be done.
It should include:
- the workplace's register of ACM
- Details of maintenance or service work on the ACM including:
--- who performed the work
--- the dates it was done
--- the scope of the work
--- any clearance certificates (see clearance inspections, part 11.10 of the asbestos management code)
---
how people at risk are informed about ACM in the workplace, the risks they pose and the control measures in place
--- decisions about management options and the reasons for these decisions
--- a timetable for action, including priorities and dates for reviewing risk assessments and specific circumstances that may affect the timetable
monitoring arrangements
--- the responsibilities of people involved in the plan
--- training arrangements for workers and contractors
--- a procedure for reviewing and updating the management plan and the register of ACM, including a timetable
safe work methods.
The following general principles must be applied in developing an asbestos management plan:
- the goal should be to rid workplaces of asbestos wherever possible rather than seek to control risk by sealing, enclosing or encapsulating asbestos-containing material
- all asbestos-containing material (ACM) should be labelled and recorded in a register
- a risk assessment must be conducted for all identified or suspected ACM
- control measures must be put in place to prevent exposure to airborne asbestos fibres
- there must be full consultation, information sharing and involvement during the development of each step of the asbestos management plan
- the identification of ACM and associated risk assessments should only be undertaken by competent people
- all people on premises where ACM are present must be fully informed about the consequences of exposure to asbestos and appropriate control measures.
By 1 January 2008 all workplaces must comply with the asbestos management code, which specifies obligations in relation to both friable and bonded asbestos material.
Even if no asbestos is found, a register should still be kept which records this fact.
The ASBESTOS MANAGEMENT CODE details the information that the register should contain. This includes:
Identification:
- dates of inspections
- locations of asbestos
- details of materials presumed to contain asbestos
- inaccessible areas that contain asbestos
- analysis results.
Risk assessment:
-
dates of risk assessments and details of the competent person that performed them
-findings and conclusions of risk assessments
-results of any air monitoring for airborne asbestos fibres.
Control measures:
-
the control measures resulting from a risk assessment
- full details of any maintenance work or service on ACM.
The register is to be made available to:
-
workers and their representatives
- any other employers within the premises
- any person removing ACM
- any person engaged to perform work that may disturb ACM
- any other person who might be exposed.
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ASBESTOS REMOVAL OF LESS THAN 10M2
The removal of less than 10m2 of bonded asbestos does not require a certificate.
However it can only be performed by a competent person.
A competent person is a person who possesses adequate qualifications, such as suitable training and sufficient knowledge, experience or skill, to perform a specific task safely.
All asbestos removal work must be undertaken in compliance with the National Code of Practice for the Safe Removal of Asbestos.
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ASBESTOS REMOVAL OF MORE THAN 10m2
The removal of any amount of friable asbestos must be done by a certified asbestos removalist (holding either a current licence for asbestos removal work issued between 1 February 2002 and 31 December 2005 or an ""A"" class licence for asbestos removal work issued from 1 January 2006).
All work must be done in a manner to comply with the ASBESTOS REMOVAL CODE and the ASEBSTOS MANAGEMENT CODE.
From 1 July 2006:
- work to remove 10m2 or more of bonded asbestos-containing material must also be done by a certified asbestos removalist
The required licences for asbestos removal are:
""B"" Class licences only covering work to remove 10m2 or more of bonded asbestos material. Such a licence does not permit its holder to remove friable asbestos.
Asbestos removalists must do the following:
- hold a licence to perform asbestos removal work where required
- removal of friable asbestos requires a certified asbestos removalist
- removal of 10m2 or more of bonded asbestos requires a certified asbestos removalist from 1 July 2006
- removal of less than 10m2 of bonded asbestos does not require a certified asbestos removalist, but the asbestos removalist must be competent.
- if applicable, provide details of their licence to the client
- develop an asbestos removal control plan before work starts
- ensure asbestos removal is carried out safely
- ensure asbestos removal supervisors have appropriate knowledge of precautions and procedures
- ensure persons performing the removal of ACM are competent to perform the tasks
- provide people doing asbestos removal work with adequate training to prevent risk to themselves and others
- establish a health surveillance program as determined by an assessment of potential risk.
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