Three weeks after a tornado ripped through the Denison Country Caravan Park in New South Wales, it still remains closed to the public due to asbestos contaminating the site. Representatives from the NSW Government will now start to look at how much it is going to cost to clean up the damage.

This asbestos inspection by New South Wales government representatives has been welcomed by Fred Longmire, the Corowa Council Major who has spoken out about his frustration as to how slow the government has taken to respond to the situation. The asbestos is present where there is damage in the park thus it is these areas that pose a risk to people’s health.

Asbestos can create a health risk for people who are exposed to it. Following exposure to asbestos, a person may well contract an asbestos condition such mesothelioma or asbestos related pleural disease.

These health risks are the reason the Environmental Protection Agency has placed restrictions on the park to remain closed. This is a precaution to ensure nobody is exposed to asbestos, thus reducing the risk of people contracting asbestos related illnesses. These kinds of actions are extremely important in these situations as Australia has one of the highest rates of asbestos related diseases in the world.

Concerns were raised to Workplace Health and Safety Queensland regarding asbestos in Toowoomba following the suggestion that a company was dealing with this life-threatening substance in a careless and illegal manner.

Queensland Workplace Health and Safety are not concerned with accountability at this point in time. Rather, they would like to concentrate their energies on alerting affected persons of the asbestos risk. It is important that everyone in the vicinity recognise asbestos is a dangerous and life-threatening substance.

Once asbestos is disturbed, it releases fine asbestos particles in the air. Once these particles are inhaled, they can lead to mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases.

Unfortunately, there have been many cases of mesothelioma in Queensland and asbestosis in Queensland. Asbestos was widely used in Queensland over decades. Queensland now has to cope with many persons suffering asbestos conditions.

As a result of the many people suffering asbestos conditions in Queensland, the Queensland Government implemented legislation a number of years ago to assist those suffering asbestos conditions in Queensland make a claim for asbestos compensation in Queensland.

Illegally dumped asbestos has been discovered among a large amount of dumped building materials on Badgerys Creek Road in Sydney, NSW. Liverpool councilor Peter Harle has confirmed that dumping is a major problem for the council which sees them spend more then $200,000 a year on cleaning up the mess.

While the council and community both work hard to catch these dumpers, the task becomes difficult in areas like Badgerys Creek which are somewhat isolated from the community. In remote areas like these, the chances of dumping and not being caught are high. When these offenders have been caught, Council has imposed fine of more then $100,000 however they lack the resources to catch everyone responsible.
The major concern is that if the asbestos fibres dry and are then disturbed, they often become airborne and then pose a health risk to any person who inhales them. Exposure to asbestos can lead to people contracting asbestos related diseases such as asbestosis, asbestos related pleural effusion or mesothelioma.

With these asbestos fears in mind, this Sydney Council needs to ensure they remove any asbestos in the area as soon as possible to try and reduce the risk of those members of this New South Wales community being exposed to asbestos.

.

Asbestos has been successfully removed from a pavilion at Leeton Showground in New South Wales. The Leeton Showground Trust has been planning to clear the area of asbestos for some time now however have not had the necessary funds to do so. Leeton Shire Council, being the regulatory body for the building, decided it posed a significant health risk to the community and had all the asbestos removed from the site.

When removing the asbestos from the site, Council met with the NSW Department of Lands to discuss the risk to the public’s health and safety coming into RFL football and netball season. Exposure to asbestos can lead to individuals contracting asbestos related diseases such as asbestosis, asbestos related pleural disease and mesothelioma. While there is mesothelioma treatment available, such treatment is often palliative, and the number of new mesothelioma cases in Australia is expected to peak within the next decade. With this in mind, it’s not surprising Leeton Shire council thought it was necessary for the asbestos to be cleared from this public area.

The area is now safe with all asbestos being removed and there are no longer any health concerns for the community. Resolving asbestos concerns quickly and efficiently is extremely important as Australia has one of the highest rates of asbestos related diseases in the world and asbestos exposure claims the lives of many Australians per year