A Holistic Approach to Managing Asbestos Hazards

Andrew F. Oberta, MPH, CIHThe Environmental Consultancy

Austin, Texas, USAwww.asbestosguru-oberta.com

Presented at the

Asian Asbestos Conference

Hong Kong – April 26, 2009

© 2009 The Environmental Consultancy. All rights reserved.

andFacts and Myths about Asbestos Cement

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Disclaimer

Some of the photographs in this course show work practices that may not reflect the use of proper health and safety precautions. The use of these photographs does not endorse such work practices. The photographs have been selected either to convey other important information or to call attention to the improper work practices for instructional purposes.

Managing asbestos hazards

• Government regulations• Contracts and tenders for work• Health and safety policies• Voluntary consensus standards

Developed by affected parties Accepted through a rigorous balloting process

• Standards, regulations and guidance documents are listed in an appendix to this paper in the published conference proceedings

ASTM International

• ASTM International is the world’s largest producer of voluntary consensus standards

• ASTM is not a government agency – it is a non-profit organization

• Voting in ASTM is by individual members, not by governments

ASTM standards discussed

• ASTM E2356 Comprehensive Building Asbestos Surveys -- Baseline Surveys, Sampling, Exposure Assessments, Project Design Surveys

• ASTM E1368 Visual Inspection – removal project management

• ASTM E2394 Asbestos Cement – work practices for installed materials

• ASTM Manual on Asbestos Control: Surveys,

Removal and Management – Second Edition• www.astm.org

Installed asbestos products

This presentation neither endorses nor encourages the installation of new or re-used asbestos products

Using the ASTM Standards

Baseline Survey -- ASTM E2356

• Provide a general sense of the location, type, quantity and condition of asbestos-containing materials (ACM) in the building or facility

• Provide information for long-term management• Collect and analyze bulk samples of materials• Quantify and assess asbestos-containing

materials

Inspection and sampling

• All accessible locations are inspected unless excluded for specified reasons

• All suspect materials are sampled for analysis to determine the type and percent of asbestos they contain

Analysis

Polarized Light Microscopy

Chrysotile fibers

Assessment of ACM

• Assessment data are used to assist in making decisions about removing ACMs or managing them in place

• Current Condition: Status of the ACM today based on damage and debris

• Potential for Disturbance: What could happen to the ACM tomorrow considering physical and environmental factors

Prioritizing removal of ACM

Operations and Maintenance

Cleaning up debris

Operations and Maintenance

Making holes

in floor tile

Repairing

valve insulation

Project Design Survey

• Provides information for plans and specifications to remove the ACM in an abatement project

• Design issues including• Estimation of ACM quantities• Utilities for contractor• Emergency exits• Inaccessible ACM• Hazardous locations• Maintaining essential services

Concealed spaces

Asbestos removal

• ASTM E1368 Visual Inspection of Asbestos Abatement Projects Work done to contract requirements Surveillance by owner’s representative Thorough inspections during project Completeness of removal and clean-up Air sampling for final clearance

Asbestos removal

Friable asbestos

Non-friable asbestos

Final clearance

Clearance air sampling

Visual inspectionsRemoval and cleanup

Asbestos fiber use

“Chrysotile cement represents between 85% and 90% of the market for chrysotile asbestos...,”

“Saving lives with chrysotile asbestos!” The Chrysotile Institute, Montreal, Quebec

Consumption of asbestos fiber in 11 countries (metric tons)

2000 2004 2006

954,340 1,516,870 1,339,975

Total world consumption 2,043,517

Source: United States Geological Survey

Asbestos Cement

• ASTM E2394 Maintenance, Renovation and Repair of Installed Asbestos Cement Products

• Small-scale work• Hand tools • Wet methods• Training and supervision• Procedures in appendices

Typical operations

• Drilling• Cutting • Breaking • Sanding • Grinding • Filing • Dismantling • Surface cleaning • Scraping

Dust, debris and fiber control

• Wet methods Water (with surfactant)Thickened substances Liquid adhesives Wet wiping

• Tools and equipment Hand tools Low-speed power tools

Prohibited operations

• Cutting with high-speed power saws • Burnishing with high-speed wire brushes • Cleaning with compressed air • High pressure water blasting • Re-use and re-cycling

Dismantle before demolition

Source: U S Environmental Protection Agency

Infrastructure

Facts and Myths about Asbestos-Cement

Myth: Fibers are firmly locked in a cement matrixFact: Fibers are readily released from deteriorated or weathered surfaces

Myth: Asbestos-cement cannot be crumbled to powder by hand pressureFact: Products such as this piece of corrugated siding become friable from damage

Myth: Asbestos-cement products present no exposure hazard to building occupantsFact: Asbestos roofing and siding can release fibers inside as well as outside the building

Myth: Asbestos-cement pipes presents no health or environmental hazard Fact: Fibers are released when pipes are dug up and broken and crushed. Pressure pipe for water distribution was made with crocidolite and amosite as well as chrysotile.

Myth: Paint and encapsulants offer permanent protection against asbestos fiber releaseFact: Paint and encapsulants deteriorate and take asbestos fibers with them when they peel off

Scanning electron microscope

Optical microscope

Conclusions

• Consensus standards provide a framework for managing asbestos materials

• To use this holistic approach an infrastructure involving the public and private sectors is needed

• Asbestos cement is not the innocuous material that its purveyors portray it to be

Andrew F. Oberta, MPH, CIH

Andy Oberta holds the unique combination of Aeronautical Engineering and Master of Public Health degrees and is Certified in Comprehensive Practice by the American Board of Industrial Hygiene. He is an internationally-recognized expert on asbestos control, a field in which he has specialized since 1980, having consulted and lectured in several countries. He holds US Environmental Protection Agency accreditations and is licensed as an asbestos consultant in Texas. Mr. Oberta provides a wide range of consulting and training services for problems related to asbestos-containing materials and also produces and distributes training and information technology products for asbestos control. As Chairman of the ASTM Task Group on Asbestos Management, Mr. Oberta is responsible for three standards on asbestos control. He is the author of the ASTM Manual on Asbestos Control: Surveys, Removal and Management, which describes the use of these standards, and is the instructor for the ASTM Standards for Asbestos Control courses. Mr. Oberta has served as President of the Environmental Information Association , a multi-disciplinary organization dedicated to the control of asbestos hazards.