In the wake of this season’s tornados, countless families and businesses are faced with the realities of dealing with demolition and debris removal. Even in normal conditions, asbestos abatement entails a controlled and thorough process. While mesothelioma prevention and asbestos remediation can be expensive, there are resources available for virtually every project. Individuals can work with state-lisenced contractors to properly repair or remove asbestos before the materials are disturbed by demolition or construction. Typically, property owners are very willing to protect themselves and others from possible exposure by taking these important steps in asbestos disposal and the disposal of other hazardous materials. But this may not be the case when the difficult process of disaster clean-up begins.

According to Alabama’s13.com, an NBC affliate, in light of disaster, homeowners may be tempted to shrug their shoulders at exposure to asbestos and other harmful materials, despite the possible link to diseases such as mesothelioma. This attitude is understandable, considering the overwhelming task at hand. But regardless of the natural human urge to move forward with disaster recovery, city institutions, contractors and property owners have a responsibility to protect citizens from further harm by additional exposure.

According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, in these cases, the primary role of FEMA and the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is to assist local authorities in determining how best to implement their plans for removal and disposal. They do strongly encourage communities who are considering burying, stockpiling or burning potentially hazardous materials to contact the DEP before moving forward. This is a critical step in mesothelioma prevention and the prevention of other diseases linked to exposure of building materials.

The post-disaster clean-up process will likely be challenging for homeowners, regardless whether they hire contractors or choose to do some of the work on their own. But FEMA offers its support and strongly advises individuals not to clean up potentially contaminated materials without assistance. For assistance: FEMA Disaster Field Office Environmental Liaison Officer, or the Hazardous Materials and Oil Spills National Response Center, 1-800-424-8802.

Whether you are about to start a construction project or have just completed one, you may have concerns about exposure to asbestos and the reported risk of mesothelioma. Being informed about the materials you will encounter or have encountered is one important step in asbestos remediation and mesothelioma prevention. For example, how you deal with demolition depends largely on the uses of asbestos in the original construction.

When addressing asbestos disposal, handling or abatement in your next project, it is important to understand the difference between friable and non-friable asbestos. Friable asbestos is a general term generally used to describe asbestos that is broken or crumbled easily by hand. If asbestos is friable, there may be a higher likelihood that asbestos fibers will be released into the air during demolition or asbestos disposal.

Non-friable asbestos fibers are considered hard to break by hand, and therefore may have a lower probability of being released into the air. When left alone, non-friable asbestos-containing materials may not pose any serious risk to human health. It is when non-friable asbestos-containing materials are disturbed that they may become a problem.

The EPA has established guidelines for dealing with both friable and non-friable materials. But when it comes to non-friable materials, it becomes important to consider the conditions that influence the level of risk from these materials.

There are many factors that can influence whether an asbestos-containing material is or will become friable. These include: methods of ventilation, demolition and asbestos disposal; the type of material; and when and how the material was made.

The EPA also has established two categories to assist people in determining how to approach these materials. Category 1 non-friable materials are not likely to become friable because of a binding material that locks the fibers together. Category 2 Non-Friable materials have a greater potential to become friable due to frequent use or extreme conditions.

While there are no easy, one-size-fits-all answers for how to address asbestos-containing materials, there are many resources to assist people in mesothelioma prevention. For more information about how to address concerns you may have about mesothelioma, visit our Mesothelioma FAQ.

Asbestos is a naturally-occurring substance made from one of six silicate minerals, which have now been banned due to their link with many health complications, most notably mesothelioma.

Asbestos use has been traced back at least 4,500 years to Finland for strengthening earthenware pots and cooking utensils. The use of asbestos became commonplace between the turn of the 20^th century and the late 1970s in industrial capacities. It was also used in brake pads until the mid-1990s.

There are four methods for asbestos disposal; the EPA suggests all methods should be performed by a properly-licensed asbestos abatement company, and any intact asbestos not be touched. Knowing whether a product contains asbestos is not easy unless it’s properly labeled.

The most dangerous method of asbestos removal is dry stripping.  This involves simply removing the asbestos without any amount of moisture. While a simple method, dry stripping can produce a large amount of dust and may release toxins.

High-pressured water removal is a popular method, using the water to force the asbestos away from the people doing the removal. This method is usually reserved for industrial spaces that are hard to reach.

A technique for home asbestos removal is controlled wet stripping, performed by injecting warm water into asbestos with specialized needles. This effectively weighs down the material, which also helps control the amount of dust released.

Another asbestos-removal method is hot stripping. This technique includes the use of a ventilation system along with hot air. By blowing the asbestos fibers with the hot air, any residue can be directed toward a powerful ventilation system.

However, in some cases asbestos material is not removed, but rather encased.

In many countries, asbestos is typically disposed of as hazardous waste in landfill sites. In the United States, OSHA regulations require a sign stating that the hazardous waste or landfill site contains asbestos.

For more information check out our Mesothelioma articles on the laws and regulations concerning asbestos materials.

We here at the Mesothelioma & Asbestos Information Exchange have a useful Mesothelioma and Asbestos FAQ.  It can be a useful resource for those looking to learn more about this formerly widely used mineral and the devastating disease that is linked to it.  We’ll go through some of the more salient points of the FAQ here.

First, we’ll discuss what asbestos actually is.  Asbestos is a mineral found naturally in a fiber-like form.  This fibrous form that is assumes lends some important (and practical) properties to it.  These are its extremely low density and its poor conduction ability.  These properties are due to the numerous air pockets that are found in between the feathery fibers of asbestos, and they make it an excellent fire-retardant and insulation material.  An additional industrial application of asbestos is using it to improve the tensile strength of concrete by mixing it in with the construction material.

Asbestos is found all over the world as a metamorphic mineral.  For years, Canada was the leading producer of asbestos; in recent years, Canada has seen competition rise from mines located in South Africa, China, Australia, and Russia.

Asbestos has a proven and dangerous link with a rare but deadly form of cancer known as mesothelioma.  We’ve chronicled the link on our mesothelioma blog before, but we’ll run through it again here.  Since asbestos is so lightweight, when it becomes disturbed, it easily breaks into microscopically small particles that can be readily inhaled or ingested.  Alternately, these particles can settle on clothing or into water, where they can be subsequently inhaled or ingested by someone else not even directly involved with handling the mineral.

Once asbestos becomes inhaled, it can embed itself in the pleural lining of the lungs.  At this pint, there’s a latency period lasting anywhere from 10 to 50 years, during which no symptoms of mesothelioma manifest themselves.  However, once those symptoms do show up, the disease moves rapidly.  Victims suffering from mesothelioma often have life expectancies measured in months.

It may often help to be aware of asbestos facts, especially if there’s a chance that you may have been exposed to potentially mesothelioma-inducing asbestos fibers, or if you know someone who may have been put in that situation.  Being armed with asbestos facts can, in an ideal world, help prevent asbestos exposure.  However, in a situation where one has already been exposed to this dangerous mineral, awareness of asbestos facts might be able help prepare someone to plan for the future.

The ultimate asbestos fact is that it’s often linked to contracting mesothelioma.  Though mesothelioma is naturally occurring (that is, without the introduction of asbestos fibers into the equation) at a rate of about 1 in 1,000,000, that figure jumps to somewhere from 7 to 40 cases per 1,000,000 population.  That means that asbestos is a primary cause of mesothelioma.

Another sad asbestos fact is that much of this asbestos exposure occurs in hazardous, on-the-job situations.  Asbestos was a material in widespread use in the construction and shipbuilding industries, so many people were tasked with handling it as part of their jobs.  Before the extent of the dangers of asbestos was fully known, many precautions that might have been taken to avoid inhalation of the light, feathery mineral proved to be sadly insufficient.  The result is, many people ended up inhaling the mineral, and asbestos inhalation is a common cause of mesothelioma.

Another asbestos fact: We’ve alluded to the “feathery” nature of asbestos.  The fact is, the mineral is very, very lightweight, and is relatively easily inhaled.  Once that occurs, the fibers can get embedded in the pleural lining of the lungs.  It’s also possible for the fibers to embed themselves in the pleural lining of the stomach as well after ingestion.  What follows is a latency period lasting anywhere from 10 to 50 years, after which mesothelioma finally rears its ugly head.

Asbestos is a scourge we often associate with the mid-century construction industry.  Sadly, it continues to affect many even today.  Consider this recent asbestos article, noted on MesotheliomaNews.com, which reports that pipes covered with asbestos were found in an area due to be repurposed into a park located in Davie, Florida.  Since exposure to asbestos can be considered a devastating public health hazard, Judy Paul, the mayor of Davie, intends to have the pipes removed.  She’s asked for over $30,000 in order to ensure that the pipes are removed properly, not in some haphazard way.

Proper removal of asbestos-laden materials is essential because asbestos is an incredibly light material that easily becomes airborne, especially when disturbed.  Asbestos’s lightweight, feathery texture makes it very useful for certain applications in the fields of shipbuilding and construction.  For example, it’s an excellent fire retardant and insulator, so it was commonly utilized in the development of buildings.  On ships, its exceptionally low density, combined with the aforementioned properties, made asbestos particularly valuable.  In particular, it was used to insulate and coat boilers, pipes, and other structures.

Unfortunately, some of the properties that allow for asbestos to be such an exceptional insulator also allow it to become airborne and inhaled, which can, in turn, lead to mesothelioma.  When inhaled, the asbestos fibers can embed themselves into the pleural lining of the lungs, where they can remain dormant for a long period of time that may last anywhere from 10 to 50 years.  Once this latency period is over, however, symptoms of mesothelioma begin to develop rapidly.  The life expectancy of someone afflicted with mesothelioma is, sadly, often measured in mere months.  While there are many treatments available for mesothelioma, a significant portion of them are risky and/or experimental.  Ultimately, there is no cure for mesothelioma, which makes it a rare, but particularly grievous, disease.

Knowing asbestos facts could be an important way to be prepared about their dangers.  The foremost fact we’re concerned with is its causal relation to mesothelioma.  The fact is, asbestos has a strong link to victims who have developed mesothelioma.  A (sadly all-to-common) tale is workers in the industries of construction and shipbuilding come in contact with asbestos and subsequently develop mesothelioma.  The question is, however, how are these linked?  How and why does asbestos cause mesothelioma?  We’ve compiled a few facts to help set the record straight.

Asbestos is a mineral that, when found in mines, is fibrous, almost feathery, and very lightweight.  Both of these factors—its extremely low density and its feathery attributes—make it a highly valued building material for a couple of reasons.  For one, due to its physical properties, it traps a significant amount of air in between its fibers.  This makes it useful as an insulation material.  It was not uncommon for asbestos to be used on ships to insulate boilers and pipes.  It was also used in construction, where it was often combined with concrete.  This created a stronger, lighter concrete that was easier to ship and work with.

However, this fibrous consistency is also a big reason why asbestos can be so dangerous.  When it’s disturbed (by workers handling the material, for example), particles of the mineral can become airborne, which makes them very easy to ingest or inhale.  From there, the fibers can embed themselves in the lining of your lungs, which, after a period of latency, can trigger the onset of mesothelioma.

There are, generally speaking, two forms of naturally occurring asbestos.  They are amphibole and sepentine asbestos.  It’s possible to further categorize amphibole asbestos into additional types, including amosite and crocidolite.

Asbestos is a mineral found the world over.  Particularly large asbestos concerns are located in South Africa, Australia, Canada, China, and Russia.  Historically, Canada has been the world leader of asbestos mining.

Mesothelioma is an insidious, devastating disease.  Primary mesothelioma causes include asbestos exposure, which has raised the rate of occurrence of the disease in the United States from around one per one million citizens to somewhere between seven and 40 per million.

That’s a large spike, and it has its roots in historical asbestos use in a variety of commercial contexts.  Uses of asbestos include insulation on ships and in buildings, among other things.  Asbestos, in its commercially applicable form, is very lightweight and almost feathery.  When disturbed, it’s possible for miniscule asbestos fibers to be inhaled, where they become embedded in the delicate pleural lining of the lungs.  Once inhaled, there’s a latency period that can last anywhere from 10 to 50 years before mesothelioma’s symptoms manifest themselves.

Inhalation (or ingestion) is the most common way asbestos gets inside the body, and coming in contact with asbestos fibers at work is a very common way victims come into contact with asbestos.  However, it’s not the only way.  Another circumstance for contact with asbestos can be via contact with someone who works with asbestos.  Since asbestos fibers are so light, they can alight on a worker’s clothing, who can then unwittingly carry the killer home with him or her.  Once those clothes are moved—say, by handling the clothes when washing them—it’s possible for the fibers on them to become disturbed, airborne, and inhaled.

It’s in this way that Julie Gundlach, a 39-year-old woman and St. Louis resident, claims that she contacted asbestos and subsequently contracted mesothelioma.  According to a mesothelioma article found on MesotheliomaCancerNews.com, Gundlach claims that her father used to work with asbestos in his workplace, and that is how she came in contact with the fibers that gave her this deadly cancer.

Her story is another tragic chapter in the long and sad history of mesothelioma.

We like to keep abreast of the latest news related to mesothelioma.  This means reporting on articles published elsewhere about advances in mesothelioma treatment, as well as posting about major mesothelioma settlements or general findings about asbestos and the terrible disease it is linked to.

This post would fall into the latter category.  According to an article found on Fanhouse, an online sports-related website, a basketball game between the New York Knicks and the Orlando Magic scheduled for Tuesday, November 2, 2010 will be postponed because of safety concerns about asbestos contamination in the building.  Asbestos-related materials, the report says, fell from the attic after Monday’s New York Rangers game.

This is certainly no laughing matter.  The fact that a building as popular and oft-frequented as Madison Square Garden is an asbestos exposure-related hazard in 2010 is a testament to how deeply ingrained the blight of asbestos is in our architectural landscape.

The reasons for this are well-documented and deeply unfortunate.  Asbestos was used prominently in the shipbuilding and construction industries because it had many properties that proved beneficial in these fields.  For example, asbestos is a very lightweight yet strong material.  That means that, when mixed with concrete, it made the resulting concrete simultaneously lighter and stronger than traditional concrete.  Thus, a lower weight of concrete could be used, and a lower volume as well.  This reduced transportation and construction costs.

Asbestsos is also very fire-resistant, which made it an excellent insulation material.  It was used between walls in buildings, and on pipes and around boilers in ships.  (Its aforementioned lightweight characteristics proved beneficial in the latter regard, as well).  In short, it was used frequently—and because of that, many people have suffered.

Today, asbestos is reviled for its links with mesothelioma.  It’s a testament to the deadliness of this unfortunate disease that cancellations such as the one above occur.

The history of asbestos use is a long and storied one marred by consistent tragedy.  The asbestos industry has been around, in one form or another, since antiquity.  Ancient Greeks mined the mineral for many uses, initially using it as a fabric supplement in the clothes of slaves.  As time went on, the ancient Greeks began to realize the extent of the mineral’s fire-resistant properties.  When they discovered this, asbestos began to become considered a more valuable commodity, and it was woven into the clothes of royalty, along with napkins and tablecloths.

Interestingly, the Greeks also began using it for insulation in construction and in ovens, which roughly mirrors how asbestos was used in modern times.  They also observed how slaves mining the mineral would take ill, the first of many such links between asbestos and diseases like mesothelioma.

The Romans also used asbestos for similar purposes.  Like the Greeks, they used asbestos in the creation of fine napkins and tablecloths, which proved particularly useful, since cleaning of the materials simply involved throwing them in a fire and removing them like-new.  Pliny the Elder, around this time, noted the “sickness of the lung” that afflicted many miners laboring in asbestos mines and discouraged others from buying slaves who had a history of working in the mines.

These dangers were apparent to ancient Romans like Pliny the Elder, but asbestos remained in widespread use throughout antiquity, through the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, and into the modern age.  Even today, asbestos is mined, and finds many applications in the contemporary world.  Recent uses have included widespread adoption within the construction and shipbuilding industries due to the very same flame retardant properties of asbestos that so enticed the Greeks and Romans of old.

We’ll continue our overview of the history of asbestos in a subsequent blog post.