EPA Tests New Asbestos Removal Techniques
The Kansas City InfoZine, an online newspaper, reports that engineers and scientists from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have completed their first project using a new method of asbestos removal. This new technology, dubbed the Alternative Asbestos Removal Method (AARM) was successfully used at a building at the now-defunct Fort Chaffee, Arkansas.
To conduct studies on the new method, EPA employees cleared one Fort Chaffee building using the new method and another using the standard method of asbestos removal, also known as the National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) method. As they were demolished, environmental emissions were monitored to determine if the alternative protected the environment as well as the NESHAP method, reports the article.
The old NESHAP process demands that some asbestos be removed prior to the demolition of the structure. It can be very time consuming and expensive, note experts. After the demolition, both the structure and the asbestos inside are taken to a landfill that is licensed to handle asbestos.
With the new AARM method, some friable asbestos is also removed before demolition but some asbestos-containing materials are allowed to remain, the article explains. The structure is then wetted with amended water to control asbestos fiber release prior to and during demolition. Demolition debris and several inches of affected soil from this process are disposed as asbestos-containing debris at an approved landfill, much like the first method.
The initial study indicated that levels of airborne asbestos were lower than expected with AARM, therefore providing a safer work environment for abatement professionals. There was also evidence that cost and time-saving would be substantial with the new method.
