Asbestos Around Us : Hidden Danger
Still quite a short time ago, asbestos used to be applauded for its great qualities such as resistance to heat, fire, chemicals or wear. All this made it a very popular substance.
For a long time, people used to create a lot of products out of asbestos, such as building material, clothes or toys. But then, some 50 years ago, it was found out that it was poisonous. What does asbestos poisoning actually mean? The durability of asbestos, which numerous industries have been making use of, is its biggest plus and minus at the same time. When asbestos gets into a human body, there is no means for the body to get rid of this substance.
As long as asbestos stays compound in the material it is part of, then it is innocent. It only becomes dangerous when the tiny needle-like fibers get airborne, which makes them likely to be inhaled. The problem of asbestos poisoning is that it has the same symptoms (dry cough, chest tightness or shortness of breath) as many other, less serious illnesses. Unfortunately, asbestos poisoning has also quite a long latency period. So the real cause of the patient’s problems is often found out too late.
The most common diseases that have been connected to asbestos poisoning are asbestosis, mesothelioma and lung cancer. The lungs of an asbestosis patient are attempting to get rid of the asbestos fibers and they produce an acid that scars the tissue which then hardens. Eventually, breathing gets very difficult for the patient. Mesothelioma is an cureless kind of cancer, affecting the outer lining of the lungs. A person can get mesothelioma from being exposed to asbestos poisoning for only a very brief period or even accidentally, which is a major difference from asbestosis. More than half of the patients dying from asbestos poisoning suffer from asbestos-induced lung cancer. Nevertheless, an early and correct diagnosis and prompt start of the treatment can bring the patient quite a lot of years of active life.
Asbestos in Canada Canada, being once one of the leading asbestos producers in the world, still supports its use in its less dangerous variations. The asbestos mines in Quebec are still working. Until the 1980s, the majority of business buildings, public buildings and schools had thermal, fire and sound insulation made of asbestos. The people who were most ‘at risk’ were mostly the workers installing asbestos materials, especially in cases where health and safety rules were ignored. Then the dust from the installation process could get into the air and people were breathing in the poisonous toxins. Using asbestos is still allowed in Canada. There are nevertheless some changes – Ontario has made using asbestos as insulation material illegal back in 1973. Local governments have been making an effort to get rid of this material from public buildings and any job that involves either installing or removing it is governed by very stringent regulations.
Asbestos in Toronto Since 2007, Ontario has introduced severe rules for asbestos used in buildings. Landlords have to deliver any strange material deteriorating in the building for examination. There are professional companies that can eliminate the asbestos safely, if its presence is confirmed. If there is any risk of continuous deterioration, the whole impacted area has to be removed, again following strict safety regulations.
The most common use of asbestos in non-domestic buildings: – insulation on pipes – ceiling tiles – panels boards – cement panels – sprayed coatings on walls – asbestos ropes and cloth – textures coating The most common use of asbestos in residential homes in Toronto: – exterior surfaces: deck undersheeting, roof felt and shingles, window putty – all kinds of insulation – flooring: vinyl asbestos sheets, tiles and undersheeting – interior surface: sprayed-on acoustic ceilings, acoustic tiles – appliances: water heaters, range hoods, clothes dryers and dishwashers Asbestos is still not a solved problem. The Sunrise Propane blast that took place last year is still in our memories. Asbestos debris hit 5 streets and about 3000 residents had to leave their homes, until the whole area was carefully cleaned up. The risk posed by asbestos is still here and local governments have to keep fighting with it. But the exact range of this danger is almost impossible to be quantified. As just 0.5% of asbestos in material is considered toxic, it’s difficult to trace back all the potential dangers.
Therefore, whenever you have even the slightest suspicion that your property may be affected, ask for a house inspection by a qualified professional (you can easily find list of companies doing it in Toronto area). Anyway, people should never try to manipulate with the suspect material on their own!