The plan for asbestos management focuses on helping people with the proper management and control of buildings and other structures to prevent exposure to any possible airborne asbestos fibers by the staff and site visitors involved in the process.
The individual involved in this process must take all necessary steps to label and record asbestos by properly documenting and informing everyone on the premises of the site where asbestos is present.
A plan of asbestos management should be written in relation to the amount of asbestos identified or assumed at a site, and for naturally occurring asbestos at a workplace. Asbestos management plans should include proper identification of the asbestos including a reference or link to the asbestos register, location, and labels. The decisions and reasons related to the management of asbestos such as safe work procedures and control measures should also be specified in the plan.
The plan should also include the procedures to be undertaken for dealing with incidents or emergencies in relation to asbestos. Clear information about the workers carrying out work involving asbestos including their consultation, information, and training responsibilities should also be added to the plan.
How to Donduct a Proper Asbestos Management?
There can be many challenges while examining on a site which is assumed to have presence of asbestos. A proper asbestos management plan can only be developed by following a set of guideline, devoid of any flaw. In case there is even a minor flaw in the plan then it result in arising many issues. One of the major issue that can happen is chronic health risk of the people on site and environment damage of the particular site.
Some of the steps to ensure a proper plan for asbestos management are listed below.
- Confirming the assumption of asbestos presence – It is important to conduct a proper examination and survey of the premises of the which has asbestos. A professional survey is the easiest way to identify the asbestos presence. Samples from the site should b collected and taken to laboratories for verifying the presence of asbestos in the sample.
- Involving properly trained workers – One of the crucial part of proper asbestos management is to properly train the staffs involved with the site. This training should include an overview of what asbestos exactly is, how its samples should be obtained and examined.
- Creating a plan for managing the asbestos – Once the survey is complete, a survey report should be created listing down all the details of asbestos presence. Now the risks related to the process should be assessed and managed carefully. A proper plan for asbestos management should be created where every aspect will be documented. This plan will include in-depth assessment of the risks in order to assess the materials that can cause risk due to disturbance. Furthermore, these risks should be properly communicated with all the people who are involved in the process.
Importance of Asbestos Management Plans
Asbestos is extremely common and can be found almost everywhere, so it is important to have asbestos management plans. An asbestos consultant properly assess by conducting surveys, properly examining the site, and undertaking procedures in order to keep the health of individuals present on the site out of threat. If asbestos is found at a place, then mitigating the infestation is imminent.
If there is a whole lot of asbestos present at a site then a complete gutting of the dwelling or commercial structure is required to avoid any health risks. In an adverse case if the asbestos issue resides in several isolated areas, then the removal of several walls or the construction of new false walls is necessary to get rid of any future health issues caused by inhaling particle asbestos.
Some of the reasons why a proper plan for asbestos management is necessary are:
- Decreases chances of health issues related to asbestos – Breathing asbestos fibres is extremely hazardous for any individual as it causes health issues like lung cancer, asbestosis, and mesothelima. A proper plan for asbestos management helps in decreases the chances of these issues by identifying and terminating the presence of asbestos from a site. This plan focuses on removing the asbestos before it causes any harm to the individuals on site.
- Creates a timeline for future exposure risks – Executing the identification of amounts of asbestos and management of the risk should be done within a structured timeline. The timetable should be accurate to the management plan, specifically to sections or departments so the department heads can also follow the timeline.
- Gives the ability to carry out emergency procedures – This plan gives the ability to come up emergency plan with regards to abruptly stop work operations for solving asbestos issues. In this type of situations employees can stop their work immediately or place warning signs to keep people away from the area.
Key Findings
It is extremely important to have a proper plan for managing the presence of asbestos on a site. Following some easy yet crucial steps will help in properly conducting the plan. If asbestos is removed from a site before time then it can save many people from having serious health issues, this is possible with the help of a proper plan for asbestos management.
