Is Asbestos Hiding in Your Home?

Questions and answers on asbestos in your home and workplace Michelle Lalonde, Montreal Gazette
More from Michelle Lalonde, Montreal Gazette
Published on: June 3, 2016 | Last Updated: June 3, 2016 4:55 PM EDT
Workers remove asbestos from the furnace room of a Montreal apartment building. The fibrous mineral was widely used in homes and other buildings across Canada in the 20th century. Courtesy of ANA

Even if the Canadian government were to ban all asbestos use tomorrow, this country will be dealing with the legacy of its love affair with the deadly mineral for decades, perhaps centuries, to come.
Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral that was used widely in buildings and homes over the last century because it adds heat resistance, flexibility and strength to other materials. It continues to be used, albeit with more restrictions, in construction materials, car parts and other products today. The safe removal or stabilization of asbestos in homes, schools, hospitals and other buildings will be a significant expense and challenge for the foreseeable future.

Asbestos-related disease, such as mesothelioma (a cancer of the lining of the heart, stomach or lungs), lung cancer and asbestosis, is the No. 1 workplace killer in Quebec: 118 of the 196 work-related deaths in the province in 2015 were officially deemed to be caused by asbestos.

Experts say that is just the tip of the iceberg, since asbestos-related diseases can take decades to develop. While asbestos use reached its peak in Canada in the 1970s, about 150,000 Canadians, mainly renovators and maintenance workers, are still exposed to asbestos at work today. Canada continues to import asbestos-containing materials and products such as brake pads and cement pipes.

Last month, the federal government banned the use of asbestos in new construction and major renovation projects by its public works department.

And Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told a labour conference earlier this month that Canada will “move to ban asbestos”.
The only way to be sure a building does or does not contain asbestos is by having a professional inspection.
Quebec now obliges building owners and employers to inspect for and keep track of asbestos in buildings under their authority through an amendment to the province’s workplace health and safety laws which came into force last summer.
Here are some questions and answers for those with concerns about asbestos in their home or workplace:

What is asbestos and why is it used?Asbestos is a fibrous mineral that was widely used in homes, schools, hospitals and other buildings and public works projects in Quebec and across Canada in the 20th century. Because it lends fire and heat resistance, strength and flexibility to building materials, asbestos can be found in everything from acoustic ceiling tiles to flooring, furnace insulation, and pipe insulation. Asbestos was routinely mixed into cement, caulking, drywall, putties, stucco and other sealants. Until the early 1980s in Quebec, it was very common to use flocking, a spray material that contained asbestos, as insulation.

Is asbestos dangerous?If asbestos fibres are safely encased in other material, and that material remains intact, they are not harmful. Asbestos is a health hazard when the fibres become airborne, because inhaling asbestos fibres can cause deadly diseases like asbestosis, a fibrosis of the lungs, or mesothelioma, an aggressive cancer of the lining of the abdominal cavity, heart or lungs. These diseases take decades to develop after exposure. An estimated 107,000 people die annually from exposure to asbestos around the world, including about 2000 each year in Canada. Construction and renovation workers are particularly at risk. All forms of asbestos are carcinogenic — including chrysotile, the type used most commonly in Canada — and health experts say there is no safe level of airborne asbestos fibres.

How would I know if there was asbestos in my home or workplace?You can’t tell just by looking. The only way to be sure a building does or does not contain asbestos is by having a professional inspection. An inspector removes samples of suspect materials and sends them to a laboratory for testing. If a qualified inspector finds asbestos in your house, this does not mean asbestos fibres are necessarily being released into the air. But if the material is cracked or torn, or if there is water damage, measures must be taken to remove or encapsulate it. Renovation work, which may involve hammering, sawing, sanding, scraping or drilling into materials that contain asbestos, can release the fibres into the air. Some ways asbestos fibres can be released into the air in a home include: removing vermiculite insulation, removing old roofing shingles, and sanding floor tiles that contain asbestos.

As a homeowner, am I obliged to have my home tested for asbestos?No, but there are good reasons to find out if asbestos is present in your home. If you are planning a renovation project, the presence of asbestos could double or triple the cost. So it’s better to know ahead of time to determine the scope and affordability of your project. Also, if you hire workers without testing, and it is later discovered asbestos was present, you could be legally liable. If you employ a childcare worker or house cleaner, you may be considered an employer, so legally obliged to have the house inspected before renovations. And the most important reason: if work is undertaken without proper precautions, you could be exposing workers, yourself and your family members to deadly asbestos fibres.

Can I safely remove asbestos from my home myself, if I am very careful?It is not illegal for you to do renovations when asbestos is present in your home, but if you employ others, you must follow the law regarding inspection and worker protection. Asbestos removal experts say too many homeowners think a simple face mask will protect them from asbestos dust released during demolition or renovation work. In fact, workers need to be specially trained to handle asbestos and in all the procedures required to safely stabilize or remove and dispose of asbestos.

What are the obligations of employers around protecting their employees from asbestos?Important amendments to Quebec’s law on occupational health and safety came into force last summer that oblige employers to inspect and test certain buildings under their authority for the presence of asbestos and ensure materials that contain asbestos are well maintained. (Homeowners can be considered employers in some cases, if they are acting as the project managers of their own renovation project, for example, or even if they employ a childcare worker or handyman who is present when the work is going on. )

Any building which serves as a workplace built before Feb. 15, 1990 must be inspected for flocking, which is sprayed insulation containing asbestos. Any building where people work that was built before May 20, 1999 must be inspected to locate heat insulating materials containing asbestos. If the inspection reveals that asbestos is present and asbestos dust is likely to be emitted, the employer must take measures to remove it, enclose it, coat it or otherwise prevent it from emitting fibres. (Just painting over insulating material does not do the job).

The employer must create a register, detailing the location and condition of the flocking or heat insulating materials. These are presumed to contain asbestos unless the employer can demonstrate otherwise. The register can be consulted by workers at the site, or by inspectors from the Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST). The employer must divulge that information to anyone planning to do renovations in the building that is likely to disturb the asbestos.
Every two years following the initia
l inspection, the employer must inspect the flocking and heat insulating materials containing asbestos to ensure they are not damaged or deteriorating.
If an employer rents office space, are they still responsible for protecting workers from asbestos?Yes. Under the amendment to the health and safety laws in Quebec, an employer has the same responsibility to take necessary measures to protect the health and safety of workers whether the employer rents or owns the premises. Workers can demand to see the register of pertinent information on asbestos (inspections, location of materials containing asbestos, ETC.). If an employer refuses to give employees access to the register, the employee should contact the CNESST.

Is there a central registry where the public can find out which buildings in Quebec contain asbestos? No. The CNESST does not systematically inspect all buildings or work sites to verify if asbestos is present and if a register is being kept. So there is currently no central register of buildings containing asbestos. However, when inspectors do visit companies, they can demand to consult the register and see whether the employer is following the requirements therein.
For more information on the laws and guidelines pertaining to asbestos in Quebec, see http://www.csst.qc.ca/publications/200/Documents/DC200_1571web.pdf

Sources: Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST), Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety, WorkSafeBC