Addressing gaps in asbestos assessment in child-serving facilities

Abstract

Asbestos is a known carcinogen that was commonly used in building materials prior to 1988, and improper management of asbestos-containing materials can increase health risks with long-term exposure. Federal requirements under the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA) require public schools to inspect for asbestos-containing material, conduct re-inspections every three years, and maintain management plans, but no such federal requirements exist for child care facilities to inspect for asbestos.

In North Carolina, child care facilities and schools can receive free asbestos site visits through the Clean Classrooms for Carolina Kids program, including 3-year re-inspections for schools and asbestos inspections for buildings with no documentation of a prior assessment. During this presentation, we will describe the document collection process through our streamlined and user-friendly online portal and the documentation review methods used to determine whether asbestos site visits were needed, particularly for schools with existing management plans under AHERA requirements.

To date, we reviewed 3,162 child care facilities and 902 schools based on building age and prior asbestos inspection history. We found that 43% of child care facilities needed further inspection through an asbestos site visit, compared with 11% of schools. Among the 1,430 total facilities that received an asbestos site visit, 7% of facilities were inspected to have asbestos hazards. This presentation will discuss the importance of asbestos assessments to inform and protect early childhood learning environments, especially in facilities that have historically not required testing for asbestos.

Presenter
Lisa Greene,
RTI International
Learning Areas
Environmental health sciences
Public health or related public policy