Asbestos Industry News

Penman & Sommerlad - How to support our asbestos campaign

Tue, 24 Mar 2009 18:38:21 +0000

It's been a busy first week for our Asbestos Timebomb campaign. We've launched the campaign now because unfortunately asbestos wasn't just a 20th century problem. The epidemic of mesothelioma and other diseases caused by this stuff won't peak for another decade and could last until 2030.

Call for school asbestos survey

Tue, 24 Mar 2009 18:36:14 +0000

A teaching union is urging the government to carry out a survey of all schools to check whether potentially life-threatening asbestos is present.

BBC report: Asbestos in Schools + Video

Tue, 24 Mar 2009 18:33:41 +0000

The majority of schools in this country contain asbestos in one form or another, all of it is old and much of it is deteriorating. There is also evidence that far too many schools and local authorities have ineffective systems of asbestos management. The result is that there have been numerous asbestos incidents in schools that have release large quantities of asbestos fibres, in addition tests have proved that common classroom activities such as slamming a door can release significant levels of fibres on a regular basis. Each exposure has a cumulative effect which contributes to the likelihood of a cancerous tumour developing. Some of the asbestos in schools is chrysotile but many contain amosite which is 100 times more dangerous, and some contain crocidolite which is 500 times more dangerous. There is therefore a very real risk.

Asbestos in Schools

Tue, 24 Mar 2009 18:32:21 +0000

The aim of this site is to inform parents, teachers and ancillary staff about asbestos in schools. It gives guidance on how to improve the management of asbestos in schools. It aims to encourages openness in the UK Government's policy towards asbestos in schools.

Asbestos the tip of the iceberg

Tue, 24 Mar 2009 18:31:27 +0000

In post war Britain the majority of state schools were built using asbestos, which only poses a threat to health once it’s exposed and starts to crumble. The danger is from crumbling asbestos The vast majority of these 'system built schools' still exist today.

Asbestos-laden warship to set sail for Britain

Tue, 3 Feb 2009 06:27:28 +0000

A French warship deemed too toxic to be broken up in India is to set sail for Britain to be dismantled. More from the Telegraph.co.uk>

Hairdresser dies from asbestos after working in a salon for 33 years

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 11:06:53 +0000

A hairdresser died from exposure to asbestos after working in a hair salon for 33 years, an inquest has heard. In what is thought to be the first cancer case in the UK with a possible link to hair salon equipment, 60-year-old Carol Heaton died after contracting malignant mesothelioma.

Getting climate change and asbestos wrong

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 11:03:16 +0000

You’d think that there had been enough pop science articles about climate change for even the thickest journalists to have grasped that “global warming” is short-hand for complicated climatic processes, more accurately referred to as anthropogenic climate change, which don’t necessarily involve warming in any given place. (For instance, the diversion of the Gulf Stream could make the UK colder.) not specifically identifiable in any given day’s or year’s temperatures in any particular place. Climate is not necessarily the same as weather

Asbestos scare sparks traffic chaos

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 11:02:45 +0000

Motorists face traffic chaos during London's rush hour as workers battle to clean up asbestos in the Blackwall tunnel. The northbound carriageway through the tunnel has been closed since 12.30pm on Wednesday after two 20kg bags containing the hazardous substance brown asbestos fell from a van, Transport for London said. Specialist cleaners worked through the night to clear the asbestos but it is unlikely the route will be reopened until 9am. The southbound tunnel is open as normal.

Enforcing School Safety In The UK.

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 10:59:07 +0000

The Health and Safety Executive(HSE) as the body responsible for enforcing safety laws in our schools believes that up to 80% of accidents and incidents can be attributed to what they are calling now “Human Factors”. An indication of how Human Factors integrate with the HSE’s Regulatory function can be seen in the where they emphasise such as contributory factors. The list below shows where HSE have identified Human Factors as problems in priority areas for their action.This list is extracted from the HSC’s Strategic Plan to 2010 and beyond andappears on HSE’s Human Factors website.

THAXTED: Waste site firm fined £171,000

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 10:56:00 +0000

AN ILLEGAL waste site in Essex broke the law for almost a year despite warnings and guidance from the Environment Agency, Witham Magistrates' were told. Haigh Contracts Ltd pleaded guilty on Wednesday November 19 to nine waste offences between February and November last year when waste was deposited, kept and burnt without a waste management licence or an appropriate exemption certificate. The company was fined £171,000 and ordered to pay £5,965 costs.

Asbestos scare at Selfridges after toxic substance is found on store's glass panels

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 10:53:09 +0000

Selfridges caused an asbestos scare in London's busiest shopping area after the toxic substance was discovered along the top of its glass panes. The department store was forced to close its window display and seal 26 windows around the Oxford Street branch after workmen surveying the building found the substance, known to cause cancer, in five areas.

Why are our schools full of deadly asbestos and why isn't anything being done about it?

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 10:51:52 +0000

Don't tell anyone, but we have a problem. Most of the 24,000 schools in this country have significant amounts of asbestos. The possible effects on children of ingesting asbestos fibres or dust into their immature lungs are only fully revealed many years later when they start falling prey to a cancer with a poor survival rate and a difficult name: mesothelioma. This is a highly aggressive cancer of the lung lining caused by exposure to asbestos. More >

RICHARD LITTLEJOHN: To the scaffold with the rubbish Sandwich Stasi who thinks a workman's lunch is industrial waste

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 10:49:17 +0000

Today's edition of Warden Hodges' Britain comes from Liverpool, where war has been declared on the illegal disposal of industrial waste. Every firm in the city is getting a visit from enforcement officers working for a public-private agency set up by the council.

English House Condition Survey - 2006 Annual Report

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 10:46:03 +0000

Communities and Local Government published the 2006 English House Condition Survey Annual Report on Tuesday 25 November 2008. The report was based on a random achieved sample of 16,670 dwellings comprising a detailed non-intrusive physical inspection of the dwelling (including an assessment to its environment), and an interview with the householder.

Asbestos find at primary school

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:42:27 +0000

Asbestos find at primary school Asbestos has been found uncovered at a primary school

Call for school asbestos survey

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:41:37 +0000

A teaching union is urging the government to carry out a survey of all schools to check whether potentially life-threatening asbestos is present.

Council's school asbestos warning

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:38:30 +0000

Denbighshire Council could face prosecution by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) if it fails to meet asbestos safety standards at a school.

Fine over school asbestos surveys

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:35:11 +0000

A company has been fined for failing to identify asbestos during survey work at two Rhondda Cynon Taf schools.

Asbestos hits a new generation

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:31:53 +0000

A rising number of nurses, doctors and teachers are among the 4,000 people a year who are dying from the effects of asbestos, according to campaigners who are calling for a central government survey of asbestos in public buildings.

The threat of asbestos

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:31:27 +0000

For more than half a century, the construction fibre asbestos has been used in buildings for the insulation of pipes and boilers, as fire protection in walls, and even roofing and guttering.

HSE makes college visits to promote safety awareness

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:29:01 +0000

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is continuing to visit colleges as part of its ongoing attempt to raise the profile of asbestos risks.

Insurance firms thwarted over asbestos

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:27:28 +0000

THOUSANDS of victims of asbestos-related illnesses are celebrating after a landmark judgement thwarted a bid by insurance companies to stop paying out compensation.

Asbestos: Hidden Killer campaign launched with ex-footballer Ian Wright

Tue, 11 Nov 2008 01:54:40 +0000

Former tradesman and England and Arsenal footballing legend, Ian Wright, has given his support to help highlight the importance of the Health and Safety Executive's (HSE) "Asbestos:The Hidden Killer" campaign which is running throughout October and November and aims to reduce the rising death rate by educating today's tradesmen about the danger that asbestos presents to them.

Danger that’s still relevant in 2008

Tue, 11 Nov 2008 01:28:09 +0000

STEVE Coldrick, director of the Disease Reduction Programme for the HSE, said: “Exposure to asbestos is the biggest single cause of work-related deaths with around 4,000 people a year dying from asbestos-related disease.

Asbestos deaths still rising in trades

Tue, 11 Nov 2008 01:26:40 +0000

It kills 20 tradesmen a week and more than 4,000 people a year - more than the number of deaths from road accidents - but many workers are still unaware of the dangers of asbestos. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has launched a nationwide campaign highlighting the risks faced by tradesmen in a bid to cut the rising number of deaths from asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma. The Asbestos: The Hidden Killer Campaign will try to raise awareness of the widespread existence of asbestos.

Plymouth third worst for asbestos related deaths

Tue, 11 Nov 2008 01:23:55 +0000

NEW figures highlight Plymouth as the UK's third worst hotspot for asbestos- related deaths.