Asbestos in the Environment

Today’s blog is all about Asbestos in the Environment! As most of you will know Asbestos is a natural fibre that has been used by humanity for over 7500 years, mainly because asbestos has fantastic fire retardant qualities.

Recently, we have read several articles in the news relating to worries about asbestos in the environment locally.

Oroville Dam

Think back a few weeks now, when the Oroville Dam in California had to open the emergency sluice gates to empty an abundance of water after record rains and then the failure of the spillway as a result of the volume of water being disposed of…

I know what you are thinking “What has this got to do with Asbestos in the Environment?” Well, the recent news from the Dam has found that serpentine type rock, a naturally occurring asbestos source in evidence in the damaged spillway. The local authorities have put in place safety measures for the suspected serpentine rock. It is interesting to note from the article that almost 80% of California contains this type of rock. To read more from the mercury news article click here.

Cranleigh Water Pipes

Last week also saw an instance of asbestos in the environment a little closer to home, Cranleigh Village located in Surrey, has recently had to be reassured by Thames Water that there is no danger to health with old asbestos cement water pipes which supplies the water to the village. Cranleigh Village has more than 29% of its drinking water supplied by old asbestos cement pipes, in comparison,  the southeast of England region is supplied using just 2%. The WHO and other agencies have stressed that the pipes are safe unless disturbed and the particles are made airborne. To read more from the get surrey news article click here.

As always, if you have any doubts about a material in your home or you are concerned about asbestos in your environment, don’t hesitate to contact Safeline Environment