The risk of asbestos

What is Asbestos?

Asbestos, meaning "miracle mineral" in Greek, is a group of minerals with long thin fibrous crystals (Figure 1). There are six different minerals commercially available that can make up "asbestos", including chrysotile, amosite, crocidolite, tremolite, anthophyllite and actinolite. Of these differerence minerals, chrysotile and amosite are most often used. Although asbestos dates back to Roman times, its use in buildings only began about 150 years ago. In the late 19th century, asbestos become increasingly widespread among industrial manufacturers and builders due to its various physical and chemical characteristics, including:

• Resistance to heat and electricity
• Sound absorption
• Tensile strength
• Flexibility
• Resistance to chemicals

Where is there asbestos in my home?

By the 1860's, asbestos began appearing as insulation in the United States and Canada, and by the middle of the 20th century, thousands of different uses had (Figure 2). Before being banned in many countries, asbestos was a very popular material in the construction, repair and renovation of homes. Typical concentrations of asbestos fibers in the home range from 0.00001 to 0.0001 fibers per milliliter (f/ml). It is not simple to identify whether a material contains asbestos by just looking at it. The only way to do it is to have it analyzed by an accredited laboratory. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency provides information in its website about possible locations in the home where asbestos hazards may be found:

1. Some roofing and siding shingles are made of asbestos cement.
2. Houses built between 1930 and 1950 may have asbestos as insulation.
3. Asbestos may be present in textured paint and patching compounds used on wall and ceiling joints. Their use was banned in 1977.
4. Artificial ashes and embers sold for use in gas-fired fireplaces may contain asbestos.
5. Older products such as stove-top pads may have some asbestos compounds.
6. Walls and floors around wood burning stoves may be protected with asbestos paper, millboard, or cement sheets.
7. Asbestos is found in some vinyl floor tiles and the backing on vinyl sheet flooring and adhesives.
8. Hot water and steam pipes in older houses may be coated with an asbestos material or covered with an asbestos blanket or tape.
9. Oil and coal furnaces and door gaskets may have asbestos insulation.

What are the health effects of asbestos exposure?

Asbestos materials can break down into small, fiberous dust as they age. In fact, an average human hair is approximately 1200 times thicker than an asbestos fiber. Since it was used widely in many applications, asbestos fibers can be found almost anywhere in the air. Due to its tiny size and shape, asbestos fibers can remain suspended in the air for a long period of time and can easily penetrate deep into the lungs after being inhaled or breathed (Figure 3). Asbestos fibers, which can stay in the body for many years, have been linked to numerous health issues, including lung diseases and cancer. In industry, exposure to asbestos-containing material (ACM) is considered to be hazardous and can result in various occupationally related diseases. According to Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation, the list of cancer causing asbestos minerals is incomplete and still growing. Therefore, although many known asbestos fibers have been banned today, the continuing issue of exposure to asbestos-like materials and their health hazards is unlikely to go away in the future.

Figure 3: Health Effects of Asbestos.

What do I do if I suspect there is asbestos to be in my home?

It is important to note that THERE IS NO DANGER unless fibers are released and inhaled into the lungs. The Wrekin Housing Trust provides many approaches to deal with the presence of asbestos in homes:

• Avoid disturbing or damaging asbestos materials in good condition.
• Avoid creating asbestos dust
• Avoid breathing asbestos dust.
• Asbestos material in good condition should be left alone.
• If you think you may have asbestos containing products in your home, SEEK ADVICE before you take any action.

The following precautions should be taken when dealing with asbestos containing materials:

• Keep other people away from the area of work.
• Wear protective clothing (e.g. overalls), preferably disposable, and avoid breathing in asbestos dust.
• Keep asbestos materials wet to avoid producing dust.
• Work outside if possible and avoid working overhead.
• Do not drill, cut or disturb asbestos unless absolutely necessary. Do not scrape or sand asbestos materials before painting and decorating (consider covering over existing decorations rather than attempting to remove them). Some types of asbestos materials are very soft and can release large numbers of fibers if rubbed or scraped.
• Use hand tools rather than power tools.
• Do not use a domestic vacuum cleaner to clear up the dust. Hire an industrial vacuum cleaner.
• When you have finished work, clean up and then take off the overalls carefully, to avoid raising any dust that may have collected in the fabric. In case of disposable overalls, double-bag them, clearly mark (ASBESTOS) and dispose of as asbestos waste. Wash non-disposable overalls straight away, separately from other clothing, in washing machine.

How do I dispose of asbestos?

The Wrekin Housing Trust provides information on the safe disposal of asbestos-containing materials:

• Wet small amounts of asbestos waste and put it in a strong plastic bag- seal this tightly and clearly mark it ASBESTOS.
• Do not break up large asbestos-cement sheets- they do not need to be sealed in bags but should be wrapped in polythene or similar sheeting and disposed of as asbestos waste.
• Do not put any asbestos waste in the dustbin.

The original topic : online asbestos world