Asbestos contaminated soils: the health risk lurking in your backyard?

IOM is running a half day seminar on “Asbestos in Contaminated Land” on Monday 29th November in Sunderland, starting at 1.15pm.

Asbestos was widely used in all types of buildings until about 30 years ago. As a result, asbestos contaminated soils are often present on brownfield sites – before, during and after redevelopment. We frequently come across high levels of asbestos contamination in gardens and community recreation areas. During dry weather, asbestos can easily become airborne as a result of any soil disturbance, for example from children playing, gardening and major construction activities.  Asbestos contaminated soil can easily be transferred indoors on shoes or carried on vehicle wheels to public highways, causing additional, secondary exposures.  Tailored risk assessments and asbestos management procedures, appropriate for the current/planned use of affected ground, are required to avoid increased risks of lung cancer and mesothelioma.

This seminar will discuss asbestos in brownfield sites, assessing the contamination, how exposure occurs, risks to health, remediation and SPOSH.  This half day event is aimed at EHOs, Contaminated Land Officers and others involved with assessing and managing health risks from contaminated land.

The seminar programme and booking form are available here as PDF downloads.