New Asbestos Risk !

Back in 1990  Australia banned Asbestos use in its many forms to try and stem the spread of  deadly diseases that are caused by inhaling its tiny fibres which break free whenever an asbestos product is cut, sawed or in any way broken apart.

That caused a massive dislocation of industry.  In particular, the building product industry was a big user of asbestos and many products had to be reformulated, and existing homes built before 1990 seemed the main risk the public faced.  There was a massive public advertising campaign to warn renovators of the need to check if asbestos was present before commencing even basic home repairs.  Simply drilling a hole in a sheet of material containing asbestos was sufficient to be the cause of a lingering later death,

All building materials now manufactured in Australia are free of asbestos but all the homes built before 1990 are simply riddled with the stuff.  Despite the warnings, many people fail to recognise materials that pose a danger and we are likely to see asbestos related diseases taking lives well into the next century.

Fortunately, the rising price of homes in Australia is increasing the ratio of " demolish and rebuild " over " repair and renovate ".  Demolition laws ensure that this work is carried out by licensed contractors who safely remove all forms of asbestos and dispose of it at a regulated landfill, where it is immediately buried.  Health and safety are plagued by rogue waste disposal operators who dump this hazardous waste on public land - and sometimes in quiet suburban streets.  This crime now attracts massive fines and prison terms for repeated offences.

It would be reasonable to expect that the new use of asbestos is Australia has ceased and the only remaining hazard is the stock of homes built before 1990, but our ban on this product was not replicated in many other countries.   In particular, asbestos is still mined and remains a perfectly legal product in China, India and Russia and we are now finding that it is contained in products imported from those countries.  In most cases, there is no mention of asbestos in any of the product information or advertising material that relates to these products.

Our laws specifically ban the import of any form of asbestos but the problem is that it is both cheap and very useful as a component in product manufacturing.  We are now probably encountering asbestos in many household goods and in car replacement parts coming into this country from places where it is still a common base material.  In such form, it would not be apparent to our customs inspectors.

Until now, warnings to the public about how to safely handle asbestos products has been in the hands of the Asbestos Eradication  and Safety Agency ( AESA ) which is an independent organization sustained by a government grant.   That grant is now at risk and this may revert to simply a desk function with the  Department of Employment. It is highly likely that both the volume and intensity of such health warnings would diminish.

Logic dictates that if this asbestos risk is to be contained we need enhanced customs procedures to stop inward shipments passing over our wharves and we need the safe handling of existing asbestos warnings to be maintained to alert the public to the risk still lurking in pre 1990 housing.

Unless we take precautions, asbestos deaths will be a reality stalking Australians long into the future.