Oct 12, 2012 - Building Contractors Found Guilty of Violating Asbestos Regulations at UMass Dartmouth
A Massachusetts company is facing a $10,000 fine in relation to faulty asbestos work it completed on the campus of the University of Massachusetts’ Dartmouth facility. The project began in 2010 and included the demolition/removal of several asbestos containing structures including a tank. The tank was removed by Commonwealth Tank of Wakefield, but the company failed to follow regulations regarding the safe handling of asbestos materials – a very serious violation that could have endangered the lives of workers and visitors alike.
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) launched a surprise inspection of the jobsite on June 24th and discovered asbestos insulation and caulking that had been partially removed. Further testing confirmed that the insulation and caulking contained asbestos. By removing the materials without first testing for the presence of asbestos, MassDEP alleges that Commonwealth Tank violated well known regulations.
The agency ordered that all work at the jobsite must halt and an asbestos abatement company was called in to clean-up the mess.
Asbestos was used in a wide variety of building and construction materials up until the EPA outlawed the practice in the 1970s. The naturally occurring mineral was added to adhesives, insulations, sealants, tiles, wallboard, and many more products because it was a cheap for of fire retardant and added structural stability because of its fibrous nature.
This error in judgment cost Commonwealth Tank a fine of $10,887, but the human toll may yet be fully calculated. Asbestos is responsible for hundreds of deaths per year and are the only known cause of mesothelioma, a deadly form of incurable cancer. These diseases often don’t manifest themselves until decades after the initial exposure so it may be years before the true fallout of this Dartmouth scandal is felt.
Newly proposed EPA regulations strictly limit the levels of allowable airborne asbestos and the national agency’s own guidelines state that no amount of asbestos should ever be considered safe. By exposing the asbestos and possibly allowing it to become airborne, Commonwealth Tank put the health of their workers and anybody who passed by the jobsite at risk.
Asbestos remediation is a very strictly regulated business. EPA asbestos regulations mandate that only trained professionals are allowed to handle and remove asbestos building materials in commercial or public scenarios. Homeowners are allowed to remove a limited amount of asbestos materials themselves but only if they follow strict guidelines to minimize exposure.
Commonwealth Tank can appeal these citations but there’s no word on whether they will or not.
Back to Article Listing