New asbestos legislation comes into effect

New legislation requiring the management of asbestos in non-domestic buildings has come into effect in Northern Ireland.

Under Regulation 4 of the Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations (NI), the new duty will require those who have responsibility for maintenance activity in non-domestic premises to assess whether there is any asbestos in their premises.

Depending on its condition it can either be either be removed or managed, making sure that maintenance activities carried out subsequently do not expose workers to any avoidable risks.

Those responsible must record the conclusions of this assessment and draw up a written plan which sets out the measures to be taken to manage the asbestos materials and must ensure that information on the location and condition of these materials is given to anyone such as maintenance contractors who are likely to disturb it.

Billy McClintock, Head of HSENI’s Workplace Health Support Group, said: “Every year in Northern Ireland there are between 80 and 90 asbestos related deaths - half of which are due to mesothelioma. Many of these deaths are due to exposures which occurred many years ago, probably in the shipbuilding or thermal insulation industries.”

However, research carried out in recent years in the UK has indicated that at least a quarter of those people dying from asbestos-related diseases had worked in the construction or building industries.

As the other high-risk activities have now ceased, the building maintenance sector now constitutes the biggest sector currently at risk.

This new legislation is therefore necessary in order to control exposure to asbestos dust of maintenance and other workers who are required to disturb asbestos-containing materials during normal building maintenance work. It also aims to safeguard people who work in buildings in which asbestos materials were used in the construction of the building.

Exposure to asbestos dust can result in lungs becoming stiff and scarred causing shortage of breath, lung cancer, which usually leads to death and mesothelioma, which is a cancer of the lining of the lungs.

(MB)