Asbestos & Vermiculite: A State Perspective Cheryl Hansen Community Services & Housing Division Department of Commerce State of Washington

Topic We Love to Hate We’ve often left Asbestos at the end of our agendas with the hopes that we would run out of time by the time we got to the subject and not have to talk about it. Due to the recent EPA rule to be lead-safe certified with the RRP requirements, Asbestos is a real health and safety issue and finally becoming more emphasized with agencies in the weatherization field. WA State Wx agencies, crew, and contractors are now considering the issue of asbestos in our weatherization projects.

Asbestos Uses Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral fiber processed into thousands of building materials before 1980, including cement board siding, furnace insulation, vinyl flooring (linoleum, tile), joint compound, blown-in insulation, “popcorn” ceiling texture, drywall taping, roofing materials, and many other products. Our local agencies are finding vermiculite in attics, walls, ducts, and floors.

Health Effects Asbestosis Lung Cancer Mesothelioma Smokers are at greater risk! Asbestos was banned from use in most building materials in the 1970s after the EPA proved that inhaling asbestos fibers caused and/or increased the risk of developing incurable lung diseases, including lung cancer, asbestosis and mesothelioma.

Asbestos Past Asbestos was spun and woven into cloth in the same manner as cotton. In the past, it was likely that when energy upgrades were made, agencies blew over vermiculite in the attic or changed out bath fans without any real idea how much air born particles were being disturbed effecting homeowners and the weatherization crews. One agency told me that they always blew over vermiculite in the attic and that all agencies did it and no one talked about it. I asked him if by not talking about it, did that make it right?!

Importance of Training We’ve come a long way from the days of mining asbestos without even a mask to today’s use of proper safety equipment, such as fit tests for respirators, HEPA vacs, core drills for taking samples, encapsulation, etc. Weatherization workers in WA are getting more training. The Building Performance Center, located in Bellingham, is beginning to offer more courses. The BPC is beginning to offer courses for Class I, II, III, & IV, Supervisor classes, in addition to the AHERA Accredited Asbestos Building Inspector courses. Most agencies are ensuring that there is a certified asbestos supervisor on staff.

Asbestos Present Blower door tests Test and then make a decision Vermiculite in attics Air monitoring Environmental abatement services Defer Some agencies are not using blower door tests regardless if they need to pressurize or depressurize the house. Test it and find out if it contains less than 1% asbestos. 2nd test determines point count on fibers which is often a more accurate test Some agencies no longer test vermiculite in attics due to fibers becoming air-born and creating more of a mess. There is a real concern for the crew’s safety, as well as for the occupant of home. The crews don’t want to do any work that disturbs. In one case, the crew went to the training and decided not to touch vermiculite in attics anymore. Other agencies are taking samples of the vermiculite and testing. If positive, they abandon the project. Some agencies are beginning to submit air monitoring tests and are not finding asbestos fibers. Other agencies are contracting out their testing and abatement work to professional companies. Costs range from $300-$500. Others are deferring the work altogether. Some in our provider network believe that if you defer, it is a potential loss if you don’t do test. If you take the right precautions to do it and it comes out less than 1%, you wouldn’t have to defer.

Integrating Regulations WPN Notice 11-6 State Specifications and Labor & Industries WA State Dept of Ecology Clean Air Agencies WA State Wx Technical Dev Committee Standard Operating Procedures Draft Policy Air Monitoring There are some pretty intense procedures to follow right now. WA State is a heavily regulated state for Asbestos. WPN Notice 11-6 provided an updated account of allowable health and safety measures using DOE Weatherization Assistance Program funds. L & I have their own policies and requirements. Washington’s Wx specs refer to the Washington Administrative Code . 9 Washington State Dept of Ecology Clean Air Agencies - Air quality in most areas of Washington State is protected by local clean air agencies. Tribes protect and have authority over their tribal lands. Ecology's regional offices have authority in all other areas. WA State TDC is made up of 10 members from 25 WA Wx Agencies. They are currently finalizing a statewide policy to follow as it pertains to Asbestos. They are going through the language in specs and policies and coming up with standard operating procedures for asbestos containing vermiculite in the attic, asbestos tape on duct systems, siding, and cutting through ceilings to put in fans, access holes in general. SOPs created by Bob Welch, Asbestos Project Designer, for the Wx program. Draft Policy – The network will include 3 items: 1) Recommended training for crew and contractors working with asbestos appropriate to the size of projects they are working on and Supervisor level training on every crew. 2) Including Standard Operating Procedures with a standard format for things like how you sample, what appropriate protective equipment to use and proper clean up protocols and finally 3) Air Monitoring. The network is circulating air monitoring pumps around to conduct air monitoring tests. They will send badges in to a lab to exam exposure. Results of typical protocol on site to show negative exposure to asbestos dust to any inspectors. Air Monitoring samples will be conducted by 4 agencies in the state with results completed by January 2012. The final policy will be placed in the Wx specifications to give guidance. This will be completed by April 1.

Asbestos Future Some day, I’m hoping that this cartoon won’t apply, and that the remaining asbestos will have been encapsulated or abated and be a thing of the past!