Clapper, Patti, Schweizer and Mason

Over the past couple of years, air quality tests for asbestos has been conducted at the former Hunters Point Naval Shipyard as clean up and construction begins.  Residents fear that the air quality monitoring is not being regulated and that they may be getting exposed to levels of asbestos that will later lead to development of serious lung ailments, including mesothelioma, a fatal form of cancer, in the future.

Residents have voiced their concerns and met with representatives from the Environmental Protection Agency, requesting better controls and ensuring safety.  Several times over the past couple of years work has had to be halted due to higher than safe levels of asbestos in the air, and the developer of the Lennar project was fined over $500K for failure to regulate and provide safe environmental conditions for Bayview residents.

Asbestos is a highly insulating mineral that was heavily used in ship building and maintenance, and therefore former naval bases usually have high levels on site.  In addition, the soil at Hunters Point consists of serpentine rock, which contains naturally occurring asbestos.  Asbestos only poses a threat when it becomes airborne, such as during demolition and construction where buildings and soils become disturbed.

A representative from the EPA, Deldi Reyes, has agreed to investigate what is being done to ensure safe monitoring and prevent any unsafe levels of contamination on the 63 acre site where construction of over 10,000 new homes is planned to begin soon.