Asbestos

Background:   This naturally occurring mineral was used extensively from the beginning of the Industrial revolution (late 1800's) until the middle 1980. In application, it was pulverized and added to other binding materials at high percentage levels to produce insulating and fireproofing materials, and was found to strengthen every material in which it was added... and it was added to literally thousands of things. For nearly 60 years, many building material was "fortified" with Asbestos... thus nearly every structure that was built prior to 1980 proudly supported ACBM's (Asbestos Containing Building Materials).  

Health Risks:  Asbestos is so strong that the fibers virtually never break... but the binders that hold it into the base materials in which it was added DO break down, and when this happens,  the indestructible Asbestos Fibers become airborne.  These fibers are so fine that once they become part of the air, they stay airborne until they are ingested. Once ingested into the lungs, they are filtered out (like any other debris inhaled)... but unlike other foreign substances ingested, they tend to become imbedded into the soft tissues of the lung. They don't come up, and the body tries but can not destroy them. The human body is a great fighting machine, so in an attempt to protect itself from these imbedded fibers, it encapsulates the fiber in calcium, and subsequent area stops acting as a lung. Worse yet,  the body produces T-Cells in and sends them to the area in an attempt to break down the Asbestos Fibers, and those cells can misfire and become cancerous. Between the two methods of demise, Asbestos has been the cause of millions of deaths because of it's wide use.

Federal Response: IN 1983 the US Government started passing regulations to ban Asbestos use and start cleaning up the mess. In 85 there was the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA) which called for all school building to be inspected, and the asbestos removed... and in the subsequent years dozens upon dozen of regulations have been drafted and signed into law to control the Asbestos problem.  Still, our civil courts are bogged down with lawsuits, but nearly every player in the 20th century Asbestos Boom has long since gone broke or reorganized away from the litigation.      read more about Asbestos in Schools (AHERA).  

Asbestos Inspections:  This is not just a problem in school buildings anymore... Asbestos is literally everywhere, in thousands of products, and has become more and more controlled as a hazardous material through the years. Sadly, the hype is accurate... if Asbestos fibers are absorbed into lung tissues, they can kill you. The more asbestos one is exposed to, the more potential for damage, but just one microscopic fiber is really all it takes.

The greatest danger of potential exposure is through disturbing materials that contain Asbestos, and it is for this reason that EVERY BUILDING MUST BE INSPECTED FOR ASBESTOS CONTAINING MATERIALS, AND THOSE MATERIALS MUST BE REMOVED PRIOR TO EVEN A BUILDING DEMOLITION.

If Asbestos IS detected, it's not a death sentence either physically or financially. YES, it IS something that has to be addressed, and unfortunately there are a lot of companies that still perform inadequate and unregulated work at very high prices, but that's NOT the norm. Asbestos Associates is a division of Environmental Associates, and we identify and develop plans to manage or remove Asbestos right... and priced fairly.   (we STILL contract with nearly every facility that we started work with back in 1985... we must be doing SOMETHING right) !