by Carson Fishel
Safety Coordinator

Asbestos has been used for over 4,000 years, mainly for its durability and resistance to fire, electricity and chemical corrosion.  It is so abundant and easy to mine that in the 1800’s it became the “go to” product for insulation.  As our understanding of the human body and how certain materials can affect us has evolved, we are realizing that asbestos isn’t the wonder-mineral we had originally hoped.

In the 1940’s, doctors started realizing that the asbestos fibers used in products such as holiday artificial snow could cause lung cancer and mesothelioma.

By 1989, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final rule to ban most asbestos-containing products in the United States.  This rule outlawed the manufacture, import and processing and distribution of some asbestos-containing products and prohibited new uses of asbestos. 

While words such as “most” and “some” are not absolute, asbestos management has become extremely important.

When creating an asbestos management plan, it is important to estimate the degree of current or potential hazard posed by the asbestos-containing material (ACM).  This process would be performed by a licensed inspector.  The next step is to develop an Operations and Maintenance (O&M) Program to manage the ACM.

Some important elements of the management plan are:

• Building description and inspection summary.
• Descriptions of hazard assessments for confirmed and assumed ACBM (asbestos-containing building material).
• Recommended preventative measures and/or response actions for friable (able to be crumbled by hand pressure) ACBM. (O&M Program, Repair, Encapsulate, Enclose, Removal).
• Rationale and schedule for plan implementation of an O&M plan.
• Identification of ACBM which remains after response actions are completed.
• Plan for periodically re-inspecting ACBM.
• Program for informing workers, building occupants and parents.
• Evaluation of resources needed to implement the management plan.

How We Can Help
For additional information, related services, and more, contact AMA at 410-684-3327 or info@amaconsulting.com, or visit amatraining.com.