Asbestos - are You Managing the Risks?

Man has used asbestos for centuries. However, it is over the last 100 or so years that its use has been widespread – an estimated 500,000 buildings in the UK still contain asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) within their fabric.

The dangers of asbestos have long been known. First commercially mined in Canada, in 1879, it had been added to a list of dangerous dusts by the UK and French governments by the early 1900s and in 1918 one insurance company, recognising the connection between asbestos and lung disease, refused to provide life cover to asbestos workers. It wasn’t, however, until 1993 when most insurance companies removed asbestos cover from their public liability policies.

The health risks associated with exposure to asbestos include asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma. These diseases have relatively long latency periods of between 15 – 40 years and the problems created in the recent past will continue to have a significant impact for the foreseeable future. There are some estimates that the mortality rate for asbestos-related diseases will continue to rise from the current 4,000 per year to 10,000 deaths per year by 2016. These deaths are not limited to asbestos workers but include persons accidentally and unknowingly exposed to the harmful fibres released when asbestos containing materials are disturbed. The HSE recently announced that 20 tradesmen, including 4 electricians and 6 plumbers, die every week as a direct result of exposure to asbestos – often because they do not understand the risks of exposure.

These frightening statistics are what has driven the HSE’s commitment to redraw the regulations surrounding these harmful products.

Since 2004, duty holders (owners, occupiers, managers and those with responsibility for non-domestic premises) have had a responsibility to locate, identify, assess and manage all asbestos-containing materials on their non-domestic premises. It should be remembered that this is a duty to manage, not simply a duty to survey or provide a register, and over 500 local authority officers have now been trained in the requirements of the law and been instructed to raise the issue of asbestos management at every premises they visit. Should an officer be unsatisfied with the answers they receive, they will be taking action, which could result in improvement and prohibition notices or even prosecution. Recent cases where employers had failed to manage asbestos on their premises have resulted in fines ranging from £20,000 to £50,000 even though surveys or registers were in place.

Having had a survey carried out by a competent person, duty holders are expected to devise a written management plan outlining what action they intend to take to address high and medium risks, including a budget for the works. They must also state how they intend to monitor the condition of those ACMs they intend to leave in position and draw up emergency procedures to deal with any disturbance or release of harmful fibres.

The most recent legislation placed a requirement upon employers to ensure that any employees likely to encounter asbestos as part of their work receive suitable asbestos awareness training in an effort to eliminate accidental and unknowing exposure. There has been some concern over the last few years regarding who carries out this training and what it should include, and employers must satisfy themselves of the competency of the training providers. One way to do this is to check that they are affiliated to UKATA, ARCA or NDTG, where they will have been audited.

A health and safety consultancy service can help you establish the presence, location, quantity, nature and condition of any asbestos on your premises by undertaking an asbestos site survey and reporting on the findings. This report will indicate whether further intrusive investigation is required.

After analyzing the asbestos survey report health and safety consultants can then put together a management system to allow you to properly discharge your obligations.