June 15, 2007—The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced May 15 the release of a draft report that evaluates an alternative demolition process for buildings containing asbestos. Scientists and engineers from EPA’s National Risk Management Research Laboratory and the Dallas regional office compared the current process of demolishing a dilapidated, asbestos-containing structure with a new method called the Alternative Asbestos Control Method or AACM.
The first demonstration project was successfully completed in Fort Chaffee, Arkansas. Preliminary findings show the AACM procedures to be protective for clean-up of many asbestos-containing buildings.
Two similar buildings at Fort Chaffee, Arkansas, containing similar types and quantities of asbestos, were demolished in April 2006. One demolition utilized the alternative method and one utilized the standard National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) method. As they were demolished, environmental emissions were monitored to determine if the alternative protected the environment as well as the NESHAP method.
The current NESHAP process involves removal of some asbestos materials prior to demolition of the structure. This process can be time-consuming and expensive, notes EPA. After demolition, the removed asbestos and the demolished structure are both disposed in approved landfills.
Similarly, the alternative method removes some friable (capable of becoming airborne) asbestos materials, but some asbestos-containing materials are allowed to remain. The structure is then wetted with amended water to control asbestos fiber release prior to and during demolition. Demolition debris and several inches of affected soil from the AACM process are disposed as asbestos-containing debris at an approved landfill.
Data from the AACM evaluation demonstrated lower than expected levels of asbestos and reduced potential for worker exposure. The cost and time-savings for the first study were significant, reports EPA.
The public is invited to review the draft report and submit comments by June 11, 2007. For general information about asbestos, visit EPA’s Asbestos and Vermiculite Web page.
