California State Rock May Lose the Status Due to Asbestos
A serpentine, which was named as the official state rock by the State of California in 1965, is now in controversy.
Some state policymakers and the media are now uproaring, saying that the shiny bluish green rock contains asbestos. They are asking for the rock to be removed as the official rock of California.
California state legislator Democrat Sen. Gloria Romero proposed the bill. However, everyone doesn’t support the move to change the rock’s designation because geologists say all serpentine do not contain asbestos.
According to some reports, 42 counties in California have naturally occurring asbestos in serpentine. Serpentine was mined in California until the 1960s for asbestos. As the hazards of asbestos were not fully known then, it was used in a wide range of products such as insulation, ceilings, flooring, roofing, siding etc. Now-a-days the material is not used for such applications because inhalation of asbestos fibers can result in severe respiratory problems and terminal diseases such as mesothelioma. Asbestos is now a highly regulated substance and users who do not follow the regulations are subject to prosecution and penalty.
California is the first state to name an official rock.
Tests Show Asbestos in Soil at VA Medical Center
MARTINSBURG, WV – According to the Martinsburg VA Medical Center officials, tests carried out on the grounds of the facility showed the presence of asbestos in the soil under one of the older buildings.
The findings of the tests were announced by the officials over the weekend.
The results of the confirmation testing will be known soon. Officials say they have taken all possible measures to protect the area in the meantime.
As of now, only authorized individuals are allowed to enter the area that was found affected by asbestos. The investigation is still going on.
Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral. It is made up of tiny fibers which can be airborne if the material is disturbed or broken. These fibers are easily inhalable. If inhaled, asbestos fibers can cause severe respiratory problems in human beings. Asbestos exposure can also cause terminal diseases such as mesothelioma, lung cancer and asbestosis.
Students Exposed to Asbestos at Washington Elementary School
Children attended cooking classes and music classes in a classroom at Washington Elementary School in Berkeley might have been exposed to asbestos for five months. Cal/OSHA (California Division of Occupational Safety and Health) identified the hazard in late June 2010. The room was closed down thereafter.
But, Washington Elementary School and district officials had been actually notified about the danger in late January. Darwin Greenwell, one of the teachers conducting music classes in the room, had reported the condition of the classroom to administrative authorities.
Greenwell has been teaching in the Berkeley Unified School District for the last five years. As most of the district’s music teachers, he also teaches at various elementary schools during a single school year, and this past year one of them was Washington Elementary. One morning in January, he found that all the carpet runners, which formerly had totally covered a long linoleum seam on the floor, had been removed. The linoleum seam had fallen apart, exposing floor tiles in a fairly deteriorated state.
Some other teachers also had noticed the problem, but didn’t report it. Greenwell identified the potential hazard. He spoke with the Superintendent’s office regarding the problem and wrote two letters to the Superintendent about the potential asbestos hazard. But no action was taken by any of the authorities, according to Greenwell.
Asbestos is a known carcinogen. Inhalation of asbestos fibers can result in severe respiratory problems and terminal diseases including cancer.
MassDEP Fines Contractor for Asbestos Violations
Rick Denoncourt Carpentry Inc., a Chicopee-based contractor with a General Contractor license in MA, has been fined $10,200 by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) for violating state asbestos regulations.
The violations were noticed in November 2009 during MassDEP’s complaint investigation of a residential building renovation situated in Holyoke. According to the complaint, asbestos thermal system insulation removal had been carried out without implementing the proper asbestos management and disposal procedures.
Rick Denoncourt Carpentry has reached a settlement agreement with MassDEP, in which the company agreed to pay a fine of $10,200. $7,200 of the fine was suspended for one year provided that the company remains abide by the state asbestos regulations.
Michael Gorski, the director of MassDEP’s Western regional office in Springfield, said failure to identify and properly remove asbestos-containing material before renovation or demolition process poses a public safety hazard.
“Such actions can result in significant penalty exposure, and higher clean-up, decontamination, disposal and monitoring costs,” Gorski said.
Asbestos Discovered in 7 Virginia Beach Schools
Virginia Beach School officials said they found asbestos-containing sealant at seven schools.
The school system has recently sent an email to the Bayside Middle School staff, advising them not to drill or nail the paint on the walls.
School spokeswoman Nancy Soscia said a sealant applied to the walls during construction was found to contain a very small amount of asbestos.
Soscia said the school year will start on time because the levels of asbestos found in the collected air samples were very low.
School officials came to know about the issue when some wall sealant was disturbed during summer maintenance at Plaza Middle School. When that material was tested, it showed a small percentage of asbestos. Then the officials decided to voluntarily test other older schools within the division and discovered a similar sealant in six others, including Bayside Middle, John B. Dey Elementary, Old Donation Center, Lynnhaven Middle, Great Neck Middle and Malibu Elementary.
School principals were informed regarding the issue and were asked to share the news with their staff. However, no special notice will be sent to parents as there is no indication of a health risk, Soscia said.
According to Soscia, newsletters are sent to all parents and staff two times every year regarding the school division’s asbestos management plan. She said the schools will keep on testing the material to ensure it doesn’t pose a health risk.
