Safe, clean and responsible removal of asbestos using licenced contractors.
If you are responsible for the demolition of a house, residential block of flats garages, factory or commercial property it is important that you are aware of your obligations under Regulation 4 of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012.
Blue and brown asbestos materials were banned in 1985 with white asbestos (Chrysotile) outlawed in 1999.
Asbestos removal is a heavily regulated industry governed by the HSE. Any asbestos disturbance or removal must be undertaken by a licensed contractor and documented through every step of the process from works set up, to removal, transportation and disposal.
Asbestos removal – Quick guide
Asbestos comes in many different forms. Here’s a list of the typical places where you will find Asbestos in buildings
- Corrugated cement roof sheets commonly found on top of domestic garages and old warehouses
- Cement boiler flues commonly found penetrating a house roof or through an external wall
- Cement base water tanks commonly found within a roof space
- Square plastic in appearance floor tile commonly found adhered to a solid floor with screed. These are commonly stuck down with a black bitumen adhesive on the back which contains asbestos fibres.
- Artex ceilings commonly found in houses
- Old black coloured toilet systems and toilet seats.
- Asbestos insulated board (AIB) commonly used as a wall or ceiling covering in place of plasterboard. AIB is normally softer than plasterboard and commonly found within old commercial properties.
- Old fuse board have an off white fabric appearance material behind the fuses
- Fascia boards around the outside of a building
A full list of Asbestos Containing Materials can be found at the HSE website.
Asbestos Containing Materials (ACM’s) are generally only a hazard if disturbed. Disturbance allows the fibres to become air borne. As a result, if ACM’s are found in an occupied building they are are normally left undisturbed.
The survey that you will receive will be shown to any person that undertakes maintenance within the building to prevent it being drilled or disturbed in anyway.
This report should then stay with the building for the life of the building being passed on to any new occupation.
The purpose of an Asbestos Management survey is to identify and manage Asbestos Containing Materials (ACM’s) during normal occupation of a building. This survey is undertaken by an Asbestos surveyor who will conduct a visual survey of the property and fix an Asbestos warning sticker to any ACMs found within the building. The surveyor will then compose a report of their findings along with photos and locations. If any ACMs are damaged or debris is found they will offer advice on how manage or encapsulate their findings.
A Refurbishment and Demolition Survey is required when the premises either in full or part of requires upgrading, refurbishing or demolition. This survey is also known as an intrusive survey as the Asbestos surveyor will penetrate the fabric of the building back to its core fabric i.e. expose the bear brick work or timber joists, looking for ACMs that may have been covered over or used within inaccessible areas as fire breaks etc.
The surveyor will then take a sample their findings and send this to a laboratory to confirm if this is an ACM, what type of asbestos and it hazardous rating. This will then be passed on to an Asbestos removal specialist to formulate a method for removal and submit a notification to the HSE of the works to be undertaken.
Asbestos in brownfield sites can often lie hidden. The typical procedure in brownfield sites is to investigate the site history usually via the local authority planning department.
