Orange City Council in New South Wales has spoken out denying they have breached asbestos procedures during the managing of naturally-occurring asbestos at the north Orange bypass. This response has come after a local expressed concerns that the Council was not following their own asbestos guidelines.

From reading the Council’s Asbestos Management Plan the local understood that any rock that is not covered should be dealt with as if it contains naturally-occurring asbestos unless there is evidence of the contrary.

Chris Devitt, Council’s technical services director responded to these asbestos fears confirming that Council has been following all the proper asbestos guidelines. He says that even though a geologist has told Council that the piles of rock on Icely Road were base rock, they are still treating it as if it was asbestos and taking all the necessary precautions like covering the rock and watering it down.

Hopefully Council is taking these precautions as even minimal exposure to asbestos can lead to a person contracting an asbestos related disease such as mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma in New South Wales has left a terrible legacy. NSW victims of asbestos conditions are many.

Renovation work at the Telstra Building in Deakin, Canberra has been put on hold after WorkSafe ACT and the Environment and Sustainable Development Directorate issued stop-work notices to the contractor. These notices were issued for violations in both licensing and building approvals and came after the discovery of asbestos at the site

The site was inspected on Thursday by construction union officials and they communicated a number of concerns about the site to authorities. After the inspection was completed the contractor willingly closed the site.

Canberra’s branch secretary of the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) Dean Hall has confirmed the building’s asbestos register was inaccurate. Therefore the contractor should have followed a specific procedure for performing an asbestos audit and developing an asbestos management plan however they failed to do so.

A Telstra spokesman has suggested they were aware the contractor had discovered asbestos at the site and were confident that the necessary action was taken to ensure the safety of their workers.

The appropriate licence and procedures for removing and managing asbestos are extremely important as even minimal exposure to asbestos can lead to workers contracting an asbestos related disease such as mesothelioma. While there is some mesothelioma treatment available in Australia this disease is often terminal. Cases of mesothelioma in Australia are expected to rise within the next decade.

Unfortunately, mesothelioma claims in Canberra have been made following persons resident in the Australia Capital Territory being diagnosed with mesothelioma and other asbestos related conditions.

Residents in Logan City, Queensland, may have been exposed to asbestos and asbestos fibres for four days before it was removed by Logan City Council. In fact, this is not the first time that residents may have been exposed to asbestos; it has been asserted that the illegal dumping of broken sheets containing asbestos fibres occur up to two times per month.

It must be noted that if the sheets were intact and undisturbed, then the residents would not have to worry about contracting asbestos related diseases. What should be of concern to the residents and Logan City Council is that the sheets were damaged and shattered; this ultimately could result in asbestos fibres becoming airborne, thereby becoming a threat to the health of locals. Airborne asbestos fibres, once inhaled or ingested, can lead to serious asbestos related diseases, such as mesothelioma or asbestos related pleural disease.

Found amongst the 3m long and 2m wide pile of sheets was also protective suits and masks. This suggests that the person who took to this illegal dumping was aware of the threat that asbestos poses to society and our health.

Unfortunately, many cases of mesothelioma in Australia and asbestosis in Australia are diagnosed each year. Australia has one of the highest incidences of mesothelioma in the world. Asbestos related conditions have affected many residents of Queensland. Indeed, specific legislation assists mesothelioma compensation claims in Queensland and asbestos compensation claims in Queensland.

In Australia mesothelioma is a prominent issue amongst those who have been exposed to asbestos. Those who suffer from mesothelioma, and in need of mesothelioma compensation and mesothelioma treatment, often include construction workers and home renovators.

Although a multitude of people within Australia suffer from mesothelioma, it has proven to be difficult to diagnose, as the latency period can be anywhere between ten to forty years. A new ‘supercomputer’, called ‘Thomas Watson’ (after the International Business Machines President), has been constructed to help improve the speed and efficiency of diagnosis and treatments for mesothelioma patients.

The way in which Watson works is that it is able to sift through millions of patient records and histories within a few seconds, and provide the doctors with possible mesothelioma treatments for the patients. To this date, this supercomputer has absorbed around two million pages of clinical trials and medical journals concerning asbestos, lung cancer or mesothelioma. Watson is currently being taught to take this information and analyse it for the benefit of mesothelioma patients.

This computer has proven to be useful in more rural areas, where comprehensive care is not as accessible. Watson also facilitates doctors who may not have the time to keep themselves up to date with new articles that come out every day.

In Australia mesothelioma compensation (or asbestos compensation, or asbestosis compensation) is available to those who unfortunately do contract mesothelioma. In particular, NSW and Victoria have legislation that protects those who regrettably suffer from mesothelioma, or other asbestos related diseases, and wish to obtain mesothelioma compensation. Mesothelioma compensation, asbestos compensation and asbestosis compensation are claims brought about by people who have worked with asbestos and who suffer from mesothelioma.