Safety Alerts & News
IMPORTS, PUBLIC AND OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY
It is essential that investors, developers, project managers, builders, importers, etc, carry out their due diligence, understand and comply with their obligations, in accordance with the applicable building, occupational health and safety and other laws, codes and standards, etc.
Imported building products and other items, include but are not limited to; Asbestos contaminated building products (i.e. asbestos cement sheet, vinyl floor tiles, gaskets, etc), flammable building products, (aluminium composite panels / cladding, etc), Lead containing paint (i.e. on toys, etc) asbestos brakes, friction products, tainted foods, supplements and a wide range of other consumer products.
Asbestos materials;
Given this information, it now calls into question, the exisitance of asbestos materials, even in new buildings.
We suggest that any 'newer post asbestos era' (in Australia - after ~1990) buildings, (even after a 2003 build date), should be tested for asbestos materials, especially, if the buildings contain imported building products.
As part of a company or organisation's due diligence, imports should be considered suspect / non compliant, until proven otherise, by appropriate and accredited laboratory testing. I.e. Refer NATA - https://www.nata.com.au/nata/
The applicable building and safety regulations and codes, etc, must be complied with.
Click on the links below for more information.
ABC News building sites contaminated with imported Asbestos containing products
ABC News report on imported asbestos containing building products
Asbestos in imported building products - WorkSafe Safety Alert
Managing importation of asbestos into Australia
Heads of Workplace Safety Authorities - Rapid Response Protocol