Asbestos Management: The Big Picture

Environment-i-media, Inc.

Asbestos Management: The Big Picture

"Why me?" Why have you been blessed with the responsibility for managing the asbestos in your facility? It is for one of the following reasons:

Your employer owns the facility

Your employer manages the facility for the owner

Your employer occupies the facility under a lease or rental agreement and assumes the responsibility for asbestos management as part of the contract.

So welcome to the world of asbestos management. The management of asbestos-containing materials is a complex task. Whether you are responsible for a small part of a building, or an entire multi-building facility, there are certain things to keep in perspective when using this program. To refresh the memories of seasoned veterans in the asbestos field, and to orient the newcomers to the arena, let's review the major elements of an asbestos management program and see where the Customized Compliance Program for Asbestos fits into the Big Picture.

Start with the reason for all the regulations and controls: asbestos is a deadly health hazard. Over the last century, tens of thousands of people have died from breathing asbestos fibers, which can cause asbestosis (scarring of the lung), lung cancer, and a rare but always fatal cancer called mesothelioma. Workers today are exposed to a tiny fraction of the asbestos fibers their predecessors inhaled, and non-occupational exposure is even lower. Nonetheless, science has yet to find a "safe" level of asbestos exposure at which NO risk of disease occurs

As a result, we have regulations on how much exposure to asbestos fibers is allowed, how to limit exposure, and all of the record-keeping and other requirements that follow. Compliance with regulations is, to a great extent, the driving force behind your asbestos management program. What does such a program involve?

The asbestos survey - How do you know you have asbestos-containing materials in your facility? You either had an asbestos survey done by accredited inspectors, who took samples of suspect materials and had them analyzed, or you are presuming that certain materials contain asbestos because of the age of the building and other factors.

The O&M program - How are you dealing with these materials? If they are in good condition and not vulnerable to damage, you are probably "managing them in place." In other words, you are not ignoring them, but basically leaving them alone. This is called an Operations and Maintenance program, which can also involve minor repairs to damaged materials, removal of small amounts for access to equipment, or cleaning up a fiber release episode.

Abatement projects - If the inspectors found some materials that are damaged, or likely to be disturbed, you might be removing them under an abatement project. Removal is usually required before a space is renovated or a building is demolished

Training - Approved training courses must be taken to become accredited as inspectors, to design abatement projects, and to actually do or supervise the removal work. In all likelihood, you and your employees will not need this level of training. However, anyone who might come in contact with asbestos-containing materials is required to take a two-hour Asbestos Awareness course so they can recognize suspect materials and avoid disturbing them. For workers who must intentionally disturb asbestos-containing materials as part of O&M work, from four to sixteen hours of training is required.

These four elements comprise the Big Picture of asbestos management

The Customized Compliance Program for Asbestos is intended primarily to help you satisfy the OSHA standards for occupational exposure to asbestos. People who might enter your premises for non-occupational purposes, such as customers in a store or students in a university, as well as occupants of rented residential properties, are not covered by the OSHA rules. While the emphasis of the Customized Compliance Program for Asbestos is on preventing worker exposure, some guidance is provided on notification of persons who might encounter asbestos-containing materials on your premises in a non-occupational context.

The Big Picture on Asbestos Management would not be complete without mentioning cost. The Assessments and Costs feature uses information from your Asbestos Survey on the current condition of the asbestos-containing materials and the chances it will be disturbed in the future to help you prioritize different materials for removal and managing in place. Graphical representations of quantities and the potential and probable costs of these alternatives help you to visualize the impact of your decisions.

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Introduction

The asbestos survey - How do you know you have asbestos-containing materials in your facility? You either had an asbestos survey done by accredited inspectors, who took samples of suspect materials and had them analyzed, or you are presuming that certain materials contain asbestos because of the age of the building and other factors.
*The O&M program* - How are you dealing with these materials? If they are in good condition and not vulnerable to damage, you are probably "managing them in place." In other words, you are not ignoring them, but basically leaving them alone. This is called an Operations and Maintenance program, which can also involve minor repairs to damaged materials, removal of small amounts for access to equipment, or cleaning up a fiber release episode.
Abatement projects - If the inspectors found some materials that are damaged, or likely to be disturbed, you might be removing them under an abatement project. Removal is usually required before a space is renovated or a building is demolished
Training - Approved training courses must be taken to become accredited as inspectors, to design abatement projects, and to actually do or supervise the removal work. In all likelihood, you and your employees will not need this level of training. However, anyone who might come in contact with asbestos-containing materials is required to take a two-hour Asbestos Awareness course so they can recognize suspect materials and avoid disturbing them. For workers who must intentionally disturb asbestos-containing materials as part of O&M work, from four to sixteen hours of training is required.