Asbestos News
Australian school cleared of asbestos danger
Tests of materials for asbestos at a school in the Australian state of Queensland recently came back negative.The testing was in response to a contractor illegally dumping asbestos-containing material from the Warwick West State School library at a dump that was not authorized to accept such waste, according to the Warwick Daily News. After the contractor was told that the dump couldn't take the waste, the material was returned to the school, prompting asbestos concerns among parents.
"The results show all precautionary samples taken from two classrooms in Block A and various external locations near the old library site tested as 'No Asbestos Detected' (NAD)," an Education Queensland spokesman told the news source. "A letter has been sent home to parents informing them of these results."
It is vital that asbestos is fully accounted for, especially in schools, as exposure to the naturally occurring mineral can cause a number of serious illnesses such as malignant mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer.
The World Health Organization estimates that approximately 107,000 people succumb to such diseases each year around the globe.
2/8/11
Related Articles
Roof replacement at Connecticut gym turns up asbestos, Ed Michler, 5/17/12
Australian factory fire prompts asbestos concerns, Ariella Yu, 5/16/12
Asbestos concerns arise at eastern Australian transfer stations, Ed Michler, 5/14/12
'Take-home' asbestos exposure is every bit as serious, http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/asbestos, 5/16/12
Traces of asbestos force closure of Canadian high school, Janet Hartung, 5/10/12
Asbestos exposure causes not just mesothelioma, but also emotional strain, http://icoh.confex.com/icoh/2012/webprogram/Paper7297.html, 5/10/12
Asbestos discovered during construction of North Carolina natural gas complex, Ed Michler, 5/9/12
Walk for asbestos disease-stricken Australian children completed, Janet Hartung, 5/7/12
Korean cases of mesothelioma decline, U.S. cases plateau, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ajim.22065/abstract, 5/8/12
University of South Carolina fined for asbestos violations, Janet Hartung, 5/4/12