Re: [cg] OFF: Dangers of Asbestos (?)

**"* &* b* <k*@gateway.net>**

-----Original Message-----
From: Intergalactic Garage (by way of Lucy Bradley
<BradleyL@ag.arizona.edu>) <igg@igg.com>
Date: Wednesday, March 24, 1999 6:39 PM
Subject: [cg] OFF: Dangers of Asbestos (?)

>Dear Friends,
>
>Walking through an elementary school over the weekend, I was shocked to see
>an open kiln that was insulated with (fluffy and loose) ASBESTOS. I've
>heard that asbestos is still approved for use in kiln work, but I doubt
>that it's appropriate to have rather large quantities of asbestos in the
>open in an area where children play. On the other hand, I hear that the
>asbestos 'scare' has died down and was 'overrated.' Does anyone know about
>more about this?
>
>Thank you,
>
>-Allan Balliett
>igg@igg.com
>

Allan:

The 'scare' might have died down, since our attention span for such things
is pretty short, but exposed asbestos are a threat.  You don't need to
panic, since the problems apparently come from chronic exposure, but your
concern is justified, because children and staff are there 180+ days per
year.  You should ask school officials to explain the insulation, since it
might not be asbestos and they might be able to document that.  If you don't
get a satisfactory answer (a good possibility) call the state Department of
Public Health or Department of Environmental Protection (or whatever they're
called in your state).  If they aren't as responsive as you would like, you
could send a sample to a lab for analysis (look under laboratories in the
Yellow Pages).  If you can't afford to pay for analysis of the material,
call nearby colleges with geology departments and see if any mineralogy
faculty or graduate students could analyze the material.  I expect the
Environmental Protection Agency web page (I'm unsure of the address) can
lead you to some helpful information.

Bruce

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