Deadly Dust - Asbestos in the Air
Some sections reposted from an article published in The National, UAE - August 20, 2013. Original article can be found here
Dubai - United Arab Emirates
Uncontrolled demolition in the heart of Dubai could have led to the Asbestos exposure of some of the Emirates residents, according to a newspaper article written by investigative reporter Vesela Todorova of The National.
According to the story a number of villas and residential properties were being demolished without the necessary controls put in place, to ensure that Asbestos materials were not damaged and people exposed. The usual process is for an Asbestos survey to be conducted, and then in the event that Asbestos materials are identified, these would be removed by a specialist contractor under the control of an Asbestos Supervising Consultant (ASC).
In the area of Dubai in question, many low rise residential villas (in the region of 200 villas) clearly had Asbestos cement roofs, and were due to be razed to the ground to make way for a new multi million dollar construction project. The buildings were in the process of being demolished when Todorova carried out her investigation.
As the reporter noted ‘Residents at the compound said they had not been warned that the demolition works posed any risks to their health. One resident, who identified himself only as Abu Faris, said his family had to wash their cars twice daily because of the dust. "If we can see it on the cars that means we are breathing it," the father of two said’.
Asbestos has now been banned across Europe and in over 50 countries, and although once a popular building material its lethal legacy continues. It is now well known that Asbestos can cause cancer if the microscopic fibres are breathed in by human beings.
The article goes on to say that ‘An asbestos removal expert who visited the site said the way the demolition was being handled risked the health of workers and the public. "It is always preferable to remove asbestos prior to demolition," said the expert. "Typically this is carried out by a specialist Asbestos removal contractor, who has trained and competent staff, experience in safe Asbestos removal, control measures and appropriate personal and respiratory protective equipment. When Asbestos materials are damaged or disturbed they release Asbestos fibres into the air," the expert said’.
Due to the fact that the demolition was taking place in a residential area, and no barriers were provided around the site, it was not only the excavator and demolition equipment operators that were at risk, but also the residents. As the newspaper article reports, many of those potentially affected would have been women and children.
Uncontrolled demolition
The demolition contractor responsible for the works said that they would be investigating the incident, but that this type of activity and non conformance was not typical of their operations.
The developer of the site stated that if a contractor was not meeting their health and safety requirements, then they would be considered for removal/banning from their procurement process.
If you have any Asbestos related concerns, contact us to see how Anthesis Consulting Middle East can help you:
Charles Faulkner (Head of Environment, Health and Safety and Asbestos Team Leader)
Phone: +971 (0) 50 5541 320