Asbestos. A word steeped with deep significance and weight in this country.
A naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral, asbestos can be broken down into two main categories: friable, and bonded asbestos. A mainstay material in Australia until the mid-1980s, Australia was one of the highest users per capita in the world, and used asbestos across an array of products – the building industry amounting for one-third of this usage.
With 90% of the world’s asbestos mined, asbestos is and remains a serious health risk.
Asbestos is a known (and well-documented) cancer causing agent; Asbestosis, Lung Cancer, and Mesothelioma are all causes of exposure to asbestos fibres. The fibres’ size, ability to split vertically into finer fibres, and their resistance to digestion within the body are the reasons behind their insidiousness.
Asbestos Awareness Week 2020
National Asbestos Awareness Week, which runs from 23 – 29 November 2020, aims to educate as many Australians as possible about the dangers of asbestos and how best to manage it. The theme for 2020 is around understanding where asbestos may exist and being aware of the potential asbestos risks before starting any work.
At the height of its use, asbestos was in over 3,000 products and many of these products are still contained in our homes and workplaces. The identification, removal and disposal of asbestos is best left to an experienced professional to avoid taking any unnecessary risks.
For more information and resources for promoting asbestos awareness in your workplace, please visit the Australian Government’s Asbestos Awareness Week page.
How can we help?
Our qualified asbestos assessors use professional judgement and experience to identify and record materials suspected of containing asbestos (Asbestos Containing Materials (ACM)). We provide a detailed report following the completion of any laboratory analysis, outlining the results, findings and our recommendations.
We work alongside clients to establish and maintain protocols in dealing with asbestos hazards in the workplace. Maintaining strict systems and safety protocols, we make sure that you and your people abide by the necessary precautions for a safe and risk-free workplace.
For further information on the risks associated with asbestos, please visit:
https://www.asbestossafety.gov.au/asbestos-information
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