Asbestos contamination at Dunedin Railway Station

[womentravelnz.com]

There’s a new tenancy at the Dunedin Railway Station.

People working on the project had been told the whole underfloor area was safe to enter; that there was plastic down.

Turns out the plastic cover ran short, and a number of site workers had crawled across bare dirt, kicking up a lot of dust as they went – it was found the area had been contaminated with asbestos.

We understand workmen from several companies have been affected.

The Dunedin Railway Station is a council owned property. Affected sitemen have since had their names added to the WorkSafe Asbestos Exposure Database; and Health and Safety meetings have been called to review safety drills and gear provision.

It appears a few people have slipped up along the ‘food chain’ of managerial responsibility for the workers, starting with DCC management (the building owner).

We hear DCC is now paying for workers to be educated on what protection gear they must wear on exposed asbestos worksites.

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Related Post and Comments:
19.6.16 Thoughts on ODT Insight : Chris Morris investigates Asbestos plague

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

This post is offered in the public interest.

Thoughts on ODT Insight : Chris Morris investigates Asbestos plague

 

Dob in an asbestos dumper [illawarramercury.com.au]

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B E L A T E D L Y
Cowboy New Zealand Governments wake up after YEARS of Devastating Sleep.

New Zealand’s asbestos death toll will climb to about 5100, excluding deaths from asbestosis, which were difficult to determine, a WorkSafe spokesman said. It was expected the peak of asbestos-related disease would not be reached until sometime between 2030 and 2040, the spokesman said. (ODT)

Is the Dunedin City Council opening its eyes quickly enough even with the Amalgamated Workers’ Union (AWUNZ) on its tail ? Good council workmen dead and memorialised in photographs, frightening….

“They worked regularly with the city’s asbestos water pipes – cutting and grinding, kicking up asbestos dust and sweeping up the mess later.” (ODT)

Weathered asbestos cement pipe [cep.bessens.free.fr] and asbestos insulation wrap [Asbestorama via flickr.com]

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█ HOW MANY Dunedin City Council (DCC) staff, work crews, contractors and subcontractors have been required to work with asbestos product and exposure to fibres over the years —without comprehensive safety training and correctly specified respirators and safety clothing for individual protection ?
The answer is likely to be unlimited numbers.
Has anything changed at DCC ?
Have all asbestos contaminated DCC-owned sites and work areas been identified to date ?
Are formal protocols and a register in place for personnel who believe they may have been exposed to asbestos and require admittance to a testing regime ?

Proper warning [shutterstock.com]

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ODT Insight: Asbestos: The Silent Killer

### ODT Online Sat, 18 Jun 2016
Asbestos toll will grow
By Chris Morris
The death toll from asbestos-related disease in New Zealand will continue to climb for decades to come, despite a ban on imports of building materials containing the toxic mineral. Environment Minister Nick Smith on Wednesday announced New Zealand would join more than 50 other countries in banning the importation of asbestos-containing materials (ACMs), beginning on October 1, unless exemptions were granted. The move was designed to further reduce the “appalling” death toll caused by asbestos, used in building products for more half a century. It now claimed an estimated 170 lives a year, he said.
Read more

[DCC tragedy] ODT: Suspicions of cancer cluster
Former Dunedin City Council water maintenance staff based at the Midlands St yard say the risks of asbestos were not understood and early precautions inadequate […] a solemn memorial to 14 men taken too soon – photographs of the dead, showing men lost to lung, bowel or prostate cancer, pinned to a noticeboard in the Dunedin City Council’s former Midland St workers’ yard.

● ODT: Asbestos: ‘We were totally ignorant’ of risk’ (+ video)
● ODT: Asbestos claimed him (+ video)

Other stories:

11.5.16 ODT: Asbestos likely to be cost in future
Asbestos may impact the financial health of the Dunedin City Council’s coffers in years to come but the extent of the cost remains unknown, councillors heard at yesterday’s annual plan deliberations. Group chief financial officer Grant McKenzie told councillors work was under way at present to establish the extent of asbestos use and issues in council-owned assets, but the cost to rectify it would not be known until the investigation was complete.

4.5.16 ODT: Removing asbestos pipes
The Dunedin City Council says it will remove decaying asbestos pipes from public land after their existence at Sullivans Dam was noted by the Amalgamated Workers Union. The pipes are beside sheds near the entrance to the popular fishing spot in Leith Valley Rd. The council yesterday said it had not known the pipes were there.

21.4.16 ODT: Asbestos at pool no threat to public
The Dunedin City Council says there is no immediate threat to the public following the discovery of asbestos at Moana Pool. During a maintenance check of the building early last week, asbestos was discovered in the pump storage area under the pool level of the building and in restricted storage areas away from the pool.

20.4.16 ODT: No ‘immediate health risk’ from Moana Pool asbestos
Group Manager Parks and Recreation Richard Saunders said the maintenance checks identified further inspection and testing for asbestos was needed at several sites, of which Moana Pool was one. […] Initial inspections have been carried out at two other buildings – the Sims building in Port Chalmers, which is leased to a club, and a storage shed located next to Tahuna Park used by Parks and Recreation staff and contractors.

16.4.16 ODT: Council denies asbestos danger
A union says the public could easily have been exposed to cut and broken asbestos pipes left unsecured in a sometimes unattended Mosgiel yard. The Amalgamated Workers Union (AWU) said the pipes at the Dunedin City Council’s Mosgiel wastewater treatment plant were not in a safe state and could have been accessed by children in the residential street.

Asbestos cement pipe, close-up of Crocidolite and Chrysotile
[Asbestorama via flickr.com]

ASBESTOS (pronounced /æsˈbɛstəs/, /æzˈbɛstəs/ or /æzˈbɛstɒs/) is a set of six naturally occurring silicate minerals, which all have in common their eponymous asbestiform habit: long (roughly 1:20 aspect ratio), thin fibrous crystals, with each visible fiber composed of millions of microscopic “fibrils” that can be released by abrasion and other processes. They are commonly known by their colors, as blue asbestos, brown asbestos, white asbestos, and green asbestos.

Asbestos mining existed more than 4,000 years ago, but large-scale mining began at the end of the 19th century, when manufacturers and builders began using asbestos for its desirable physical properties: sound absorption, average tensile strength, resistance to fire, heat, electricity, and affordability. It was used in such applications as electrical insulation for hotplate wiring and in building insulation. When asbestos is used for its resistance to fire or heat, the fibres are often mixed with cement or woven into fabric or mats. These desirable properties made asbestos very widely used. Asbestos use continued to grow through most of the 20th century until public knowledge (acting through courts and legislatures) of the health hazards of asbestos dust outlawed asbestos in mainstream construction and fireproofing in most countries.

Prolonged inhalation of asbestos fibres can cause serious and fatal illnesses including lung cancer, mesothelioma, and asbestosis (a type of pneumoconiosis). Illness from asbestos exposure can be found in records dating back to Roman times. Concern in modern times began in the 20th century and escalated during the 1920s and 1930s. By the 1980s and 1990s asbestos trade and use was heavily restricted, phased out, or banned outright in an increasing number of countries.

The severity of asbestos-related diseases, the material’s extremely widespread use in many areas of life, its continuing long-term use after harmful health effects were known or suspected, and the slow emergence of symptoms decades after exposure ceased made asbestos litigation the longest, most expensive mass tort in U.S. history and a much lesser legal issue in most other countries involved. Asbestos-related liability also remains an ongoing concern for many manufacturers, insurers and reinsurers.
Read more at Wikipedia: Asbestos

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Myth: Asbestos Fibres are firmly locked in a cement matrix.
● Fact: Asbestos Fibres are readily released from deteriorated or weathered surfaces.

Myth: Asbestos-cement cannot be crumbled to powder by hand pressure.
● Fact: Products such as asbestos-cement corrugated siding become friable from damage.

Myth: Asbestos-cement products present no exposure hazard to building occupants.
● Fact: Asbestos roofing and siding can release fibres inside as well as outside the building. Not all asbestos-cement roofing and siding remain in as good condition. In many countries, the inside of asbestos-cement roofing and siding is subject to the normal activities of the occupants that can release fibres from the surfaces. An asbestos-cement panel can be vibrated by wind, causing some abrasion of the edges.

Myth: Asbestos-cement pipes present no health or environmental hazard.
● Fact: Health and environmental hazards start during the manufacturing process when the ends of the pipes are ground and the waste is disposed of carelessly. Fine dust produced during installation of the pipes is a hazard to the workers and community. When the pipes are dug up and removed, fibres are released as they are broken and crushed. Pressure pipe for water distribution was made with crocidolite and amosite as well as chrysotile.

Myth: Paint and encapsulants offer permanent protection against asbestos fibre release.
● Fact: Paint and encapsulants deteriorate and take asbestos fibres with them when they peel off. Why is it necessary to protect a material that is touted for its weather-resistance and durability, yet encapsulants for asbestos-cement roofing and siding are widely marketed. Encapsulants are a form of paint, and a good paint job begins with surface preparation. The hope is that no one sands asbestos-cement roofing and siding before they paint or encapsulate it, because of the obvious dust and health hazard created.

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█ NEW ZEALAND LEGISLATION

The Health and Safety at Work (Asbestos) Regulations 2016 came into force on 4 April 2016. They set out the new rules around the removal of asbestos, and the circumstances where WorkSafe must be notified.

New licensing system for asbestos removal
A national licensing system for asbestos removal was introduced on 4 April 2016. The licences available under the new asbestos regulations are:

Type of licence : What asbestos can be removed?

Class A
Any type or quantity of asbestos or asbestos containing material, including:
• any amount of friable asbestos or asbestos containing material (ACM)
• any amount of asbestos contaminated dust or debris (ACD)
• any amount of non-friable asbestos or ACM.

Class B
Any amount of non-friable asbestos or ACM
ACD associated with removing any amount of non-friable asbestos or ACM.

No licence is required for removing:
• up to 10 m2 of non-friable asbestos or asbestos-containing material over the whole course of the removal project for the site
• asbestos-contaminated dust that is associated with this volume of asbestos or asbestos-containing material, and/or any associated minor volume of asbestos-contaminated dust or debris.

A new role of asbestos assessor has been developed. A licensed asbestos assessor will provide air quality monitoring during removal work, inspect the finished job and provide a clearance certificate. A licensed asbestos assessor will be required to assess Class A asbestos removal work from 2018 onwards.

Current Certificate of Competence holders will be able to continue removing asbestos (in the categories specified on their certificate), and supervise asbestos removal, until their certificate expires.

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Related Posts and Comments:
11.5.16 DCC DRAFT Annual Plan 2016/17 —Harden up, Council [survey budget]
10.4.16 DCC: Council meeting Mon 11 April at 1pm [DCC sites – see Comments]
25.11.15 Mayor Cull and the GREAT Asbestos Defeat ….trucks in toxic waste
27.1.10 Stadium: CST to clean up contaminated land
14.10.09 Questions about landfill charges + DCC reveals contaminated sites

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Election Year. This post is offered in the public interest.

Asbestos-cement roofing before and after cleaning [specialistroofcleaning.com]

Asbestorama: Asbestos-cement roof shingles [flickr.com]

DVML issues and rankles [Burden’s reply]

Received.
Tuesday, December 03, 2013 8:59 AM

Cr Lee Vandervis forwards copy of email correspondence, noting: “An unsatisfactory set of responses to my questions of Darren Burden, now departed, follows.”

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—— Forwarded Message
From: Darren Burden [DVML]
Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2013 04:14:39 +0000
To: Lee Vandervis
Cc: Paul Orders [DCC], Sue Bidrose [DCC], Sandy Graham [DCC]
Conversation: DVML urgent issues to be resolved
Subject: FW: DVML urgent issues to be resolved

Lee

Paul forwarded to me your recent comments about Dunedin Venues which I briefly discussed with him. He has asked that I respond to you on the points raised:

A. We have recently installed toilet facilities to Level 2A which in an ideal world would have been installed as part of the original build. However the original build did include the infrastructure for this such as capped services. The work carried out has been consented by the building control department. The cost of the work is within the authority of the DVML board and does not need council approval. In respect of comments from Mr Anderson I have never been introduced to him and was not informed by DVAV that anyone by this name has worked at the stadium for the last 2 years. Refer to point C about DVAV.

B. We have 8 sets of grow lights which cost approximately $35,000 to build. These were manufactured through local suppliers and contractors. These are not used to grow an “ailing” pitch rather to assist worn patches in their re-growth particularly during the winter months. This is not unusual for most stadiums and in fact the size (and cost) of ours are considerably smaller than elsewhere. We estimate the running cost for these in any given year is in the order of $8,000. As a side note, if the pitch had the same amount of use as Carisbrook used to we probably would not need them. However they are of assistance in respect of the significant use the stadium is getting (last financial year we had 60 main bowl events which compares, we believe, with 21 at Eden Park, 14 at Waikato, and 47 at Westpac). Again, our board had authority to approve this cost so did not need council approval. In respect of the electricity cost it should be noted that the stadium has four substations which provides for surety of supply, however this means that our fixed charges are proportionally high to the overall bill. Power usage would be about 50% of our electricity bill.

C. Dunedin Venues has a very good record at paying contractors on time – our monthly financial reports substantiate this. We do, however, have a current dispute with DVAV which is being dealt with through the provisions of the contract by both parties agreeing to go to arbitration. We are not a party to any contractual arrangement between DVAV and Mr Anderson, so any issues that he has would be for him to address directly with DVAV.

Kind regards

DARREN BURDEN
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
_____________________________________________

DDI 03 479 4530 M 029 200 1579
E darren.burden@dunedinvenues.co.nz
W http://www.dunedinvenues.co.nz

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From: Paul Orders [DCC]
Sent: Friday, 11 October 2013 3:56 p.m.
To: Darren Burden [DVML]
Subject: FW: DVML urgent issues to be resolved
Importance: High

Darren,

Any chance you could draft a response to Lee on each of the points he’s making here.

It would be probably be helpful if we could talk through the response before it goes to Lee.

Regards,

Paul

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From: Lee Vandervis
Sent: Thursday, 10 October 2013 12:42 p.m.
To: Paul Orders [DCC]
Cc: Sue Bidrose [DCC]; Sandy Graham [DCC]
Subject: DVML urgent issues to be resolved
Importance: High

Hi Paul,

The last month has been chock full of people complaining to me about the on-going goings-on at DVML.
I again strongly urge you disestablish this dysfunctional DVML board of directors and review management options.

A – I have it on first hand authority that enormous sums are currently being spent on new toilet blocks and facilities that perhaps should have been part of the original build.
Much work has been completed on level 2 amongst other construction. None of this work has been authorised by Council as far as I am aware, and I have been taking keen interest.
I am also advised that substandard work guaranteeing long term high maintenance [like the substitution of non-tanalised timber where tanalised was specified that I previously advised you of and showed photographic evidence]. Martin Andersen [see email below] has worked at the Stadium for 2 years and can give details.

B – Specifically not authorised by Council was the funding for expensive grow-lights for the ailing turf, which Councillors rejected over a year ago as NOT TO BE FUNDED, as DVML, Farry and Co had assured us that the turf would grow satisfactorily under the EFTE roof. Extensive banks of grow-lights have been used regularly for many months now despite the Council decision, causing further direct lights cost and injurious augmentation of an already obscene electricity cost [$250,000 per year without grow lights – when the whole city’s electric lighting costs $1.5 million].

C – DVML have been refusing to pay a number of contractors in a timely fashion, specifically DVAV [confirm with contacts below] for extensive AV work since March of this year, and are now being expensively sued for breach of contract.

Council has recently bailed out DVML for its spending of unauthorised millions [I have consistently recorded my vote against] and the obvious reasons for not bailing them keep appearing as above.
This has happened on your watch Paul, and I have been forthright in warning you about it.

I demand that action be immediately taken to investigate all DVML decisions, past and present and that a full report on past failings and options be brought to Council asap. The $20 million annual running cost bleeding of the ratepayer by the Stadium must end now.

Regards,
Cr. Lee Vandervis

—— Forwarded Message
From: Megan Anderson
Date: Wed, 9 Oct 2013 00:01:18 +0000
To: Lee Vandervis
Subject: Non payment

Good Afternoon Lee,

As per our conversation this is to confirm that I worked for DVAV and we are still awaiting payment as DVAV are still awaiting outstanding invoice payments from DVML, for confirmation of this please don’t hesitate to contact Mike Cook on [mobile number deleted. -Eds].

Thanks

Marty and Megan Anderson

Sent from Windows Mail

—— End of Forwarded Message

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Editor’s Note:
Mike Cook is the sole director of DV Audio Visual Limited. DVAV was incorporated on 13 July 2012. In Forsyth Barr Stadium marketing literature, Dunedin Venues say they “work closely with DVAV who are a full service audio visual company delivering audio visual, lighting, event production, conference and technical support services”.

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Related Post and Comments:
30.11.13 DVML in disarray

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Dunedin City Council contracts

### ODT Online Mon, 30 May 2011
DCC contractors in firing line
By Chris Morris
The performance of Dunedin City Council contractors holding $10 million maintenance contracts is to be scrutinised, amid claims the workers are literally spraying money away. Council staff, together with Crs Andrew Noone and Lee Vandervis, will meet Fulton Hogan representatives next month to discuss complaints about shoddy and inefficient work practices.
Read more

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Stadium: ETFE roof

### http://www.otagostadium.co.nz
Innovative Stadium Roof: Subcontract Announced
Press Release: Forsyth Barr Stadium
26 August 2009

INNOVATIVE STADIUM ROOF: SUBCONTRACT ANNOUNCED

The contract for supplying and installing the permanent roof for the Forsyth Barr Stadium at University Plaza has been awarded to Vector Foiltec, Stadium Trust Chairman Malcolm Farry announced today.

The Forsyth Barr Stadium roof will be the first ever permanent roof over a natural playing surface, using 20,558 square metres of ETFE (ethylene tetrafluoroethylene).

The transparent ETFE panels allow sunlight onto the pitch for natural turf growth while providing protection from the elements for spectators and players. The roofing system consists of ETFE sandwiched within an aluminium frame which is inflated with low pressure air to provide stability and resist wind and snow loads.

The successful contractor, Vector Foiltec, invented ETFE roofing and has a track record of successful installations around the world.
Read more

CST now clearer it might be 530 piles

### ODT Online Wed, 1 Jul 2009
Stadium work going to plan
By Chris Morris

Carisbrook Stadium Trust officials are encouraged by the results of early piling work at the site of the Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin.
Read more

Apart from any that sunk without trace…see the safety tape on site…