Think Twice About Asbestos

It’s easy to forget that asbestos is still present in millions of Australian properties, but it’s a fact, that if a house was built or renovated before 1990, there’s a good chance it contains asbestos.

“National Asbestos Awareness week (20 -26 Nov) is a good opportunity to remind everyone to ‘Think Twice About Asbestos’ when planning any renovations, repairs or other work on buildings that may contain asbestos” said Karen Rudkin, Project Coordinator at North East Waste.

“Although many people know that asbestos cement sheeting was used for walls and roofs they often don’t realise that asbestos was used in thousands of other building products including vinyl floor tiles, adhesives, paints, textured coatings and insulation’ Ms Rudkin said.

North East Waste and councils across the Northern Rivers are working together with the NSW Environmental Protection Authority to help reduce the risk of exposure to asbestos by supporting the safe management and disposal of asbestos containing materials.

To keep yourself and your family safe around asbestos, take these simple steps:

1. Get in the know – plan ahead before starting any renovations and find out where asbestos is likely to be in your home.
2. Take it slow – to avoid damaging or disturbing asbestos materials.
3. Get a pro – know your limits. Contact a licensed asbestos professional for advice on where it might be located, and on how to manage or remove it.

As part of a regional scheme aimed at reducing the unsafe disturbance or removal of asbestos by home renovators, all Northern Rivers councils offer subsidised ‘Household Asbestos Testing’ (HAT) kits.

The kits include easy step-by-step instructions on how to take samples safely and send to a certified testing laboratory. The results are then emailed back to residents. If asbestos is identified and requires removal, residents are urged to use a licensed removal contractor to remove and dispose of it safely.

It is illegal to dispose of asbestos waste in any domestic or commercial bin and doing so can incur very heavy fines.  Asbestos waste should always be disposed of at a landfill licensed to accept it.

For further information about managing or disposing of household asbestos or obtaining a ‘Household Asbestos Testing (HAT) kit, contact your local council or visit the website here.

 For more information on asbestos safety and National Asbestos Awareness week, visit https://www.asbestos.nsw.gov.au

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