Asbestos in South Australia

The lower house chamber of the South Australian Parliament has been closed indefinitely after tests showed the presence of asbestos.

Workers contracted to re-paint the chamber’s ceiling discovered asbestos fibres in the paint of the 130-year-old canvas awning and also asbestos in the dust disturbed in the ceiling space, which is connected to the chamber’s air-conditioning system.

Further testing has been planned, with experts instructed to check for more asbestos and other dusts such as lead dust and also bacteria.

Speaker Lyn Breuer said yesterday that the investigation and potential removal of the asbestos could add up to hundreds of thousands of dollars, and a minimum time frame of six week before the chamber is safe for parliament to sit again.

Estimates Committee meetings are being moved to another part of Parliament House in Adelaide this week, with a decision on parliamentary sittings for next week to be taken later on.

Asbstos is a dangerous substance that has been known cause the rare cancer mesothelioma. Claims for mesothelioma compensation have taken place before in South Australia and also other Australian states such as New South Wales and Victoria.

South Australia has one of the highest incidences of Mesothelioma in the world. The South Australian parliament introduced specific legislation a number of years ago to assist South Australian asbestos compensation claims, such as compensation claims for Mesothelioma. South Australian Mesothelioma compensation claims are now case managed by the Court to ensure expedition of such asbestos claims.

NSW asbestos concern

Asbestos fears have risen due to a proposal to redevelop the former James Hardie site at Camellia. The German company Remondis is responsible for this proposal. They wish to build a waste management plant on the site which is near the Sydney suburb of Parramatta.

This controversial proposal to redevelop this site has sparked fears that it will bring with it asbestos related diseases. Concern has been expressed by many people about the dangers of asbestos. People are concerned about the development resulting in asbestos exposure, causing asbestos related diseases in the future, such as mesothelioma.

However Remondis have assured interested parties that protective measures will be taken to ensure asbestos dust is not liberated during construction. They are looking at implementing further measures to ensure concerns are addressed.

Many of the workers who worked at the Sydney James Hardie asbestos cement factory went on to develop asbestos conditions such as mesothelioma. There have been numerous Australian asbestos compensation claims commenced in Courts in NSW, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia as a result of James Hardie workers pursuing their asbestos compensation rights following being diagnosed with asbestos related conditions.

Queensland mesothelioma compensation claims

Experts predict an influx of asbestos-related compensation claims after an ‘unusual’ recent court decision in north Queensland, Australia.

Rod Fraser has been awarded an undisclosed compensation amount by WorkCover Queensland after his brother Andrew died from mesothelioma followiong exposure to asbestos while working at the Prosperine Sugar Mill, Queensland, for six months in 1982.

Queensland Industrial Magistrates Court ruled that Mr Fraser and his wife and children were financially supported by his late brother, a finding that has been deemed ‘unusual’ by the plaintiff’s lawyer, as brothers are not usually deemed to be dependents.

The sugar industry is seeing an increasing number of people claiming mesothelioma compensation for exposure to asbestos, a dangerous substance that was often used as an insulator in sugar mills until the 1980s.

This is because the usual latency period between when someone is exposed to asbestos and diagnosis of an asbestos-related disease such as mesothelioma can be as high as 40 years. As a result, the number of asbestos sufferers is expected to peak in around 2025.

Cases of mesothelioma and other asbestos-related compensation have been brought in all Australian states including New South Wales, South Australia and Victoria.

Mesothelioma treatment hope

Australian researchers from the University of Sydney have developed new drugs to combat cancer with only minimal side-effects.
The new anti-cancer drugs are almost ready for clinical trial, with hopes that they may eventually be used in Australia and worldwide to treat aggressive cancers such as mesothelioma.

Current mesothelioma treatment options, such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy, often cause side effects, including nausea, hair loss, nerve damage and more.

The newly developed cancer-fighting drugs, however, are different: they only target cancerous cells while leaving non-cancerous cells alone. As such, the drugs drastically reduce the side effects commonly associated with cancer treatment, and are being considered by the medical community as a potential breakthrough.

Although mesothelioma is a rare disease, Australia’s history of asbestos use and exposure has resulted in Australia having the highest incidence of mesothelioma cancers in the world. As many as 700 Australians are diagnosed with mesothelioma per year, wi th 18,000 individuals expected to be affected by 2020.

Mesothelioma treatment in Australia is something that you need to contact your specialist about. Often, one form or mesothelioma treatment is not suitable to a specific individual. Further, sometimes the condition of mesothelioma is not able to be treated. When treating mesothelioma, specific advice needs to be obtained and consideration by your medical specialists is most important.