Under Regulation 4 'Duty to Manage', you are required to regularly inspect any known Asbestos containing materials in your building and keep records up to date. It is recommended inspections should be carried out as part of your Asbestos management plan.

Green Hive Management can carry out a regular reinspection’s to ensure your site is safe and compliant. We have a vast experience completing reinspection’s across a wide portfolio of complex buildings.

As part of our reinspection Asbestos survey, we will provide you with an up-to-date register and recommendations of how to safely manage each material once we have reviewed your Asbestos management plan, policies and re-inspected the site. We also provide support should you need to carry out any remedial actions.

A refurbishment and demolition survey is required before any refurbishment or demolition work is carried out. This type of Asbestos survey is used to locate and describe, as far as reasonably practicable, all ACMs in the area where the refurbishment work will take place, or the whole building if demolition is planned. The level of competence and knowledge needed to conduct surveys is much greater than a management survey, and the intrusive nature of the survey presents increased health and safety risks.

Gaining full intrusive access extends the management survey to include investigations into reasonably and safely accessible sealed voids and the fabric of the building. This will involve breaking through partition walls, ceilings etc, to confirm the presence or absence of Asbestos. During this type of survey significant damage to fixtures, fittings and parts of the building may occur.

In some situations, where concrete or brickwork requires removal, advice may have to be sought from a competent person, such as a structural engineer. Consequently, refurbishment and demolition surveys should only be conducted in unoccupied areas to minimise risks to the public or employees.

There may be some circumstances where the building is still 'occupied' at the time a 'demolition' survey is carried out. To account for this, for example in the educational sector where a refurbishment/demolition survey is required, work will be carried out during only the holiday periods or within unoccupied segments of the budling, the surveyors will work in a systematic manner as the building will be segmented into unoccupied areas until the whole survey has been completed.

In the case of all surveys: an Asbestos survey team shall not disturb any suspected Asbestos installation in any way other than taking a representative sample (which is usually no bigger than a thumbnail). This measure is designed to mitigate the risk of Asbestos fibre release which can affect both the survey staff and occupants of the building. Subsequently, a surveyor cannot assess the materials that may be present above or behind a suspected Asbestos installation, which in turn is then confirmed to contain Asbestos until it is removed.

Furthermore, the removal of an Asbestos installation to investigate behind could become a licensable activity and may require the assistance of a licensed removal contractor to carry out such an investigation.

Green Hive Management offer a UKAS Accredited 17025 Asbestos Sample Testing service (using Polarized Light Microscopy). We offer single one-off samples to complete survey sample analysis. Our external laboratory provides you with a rapid turnaround of results, usually within 24 hours of samples being received.

Asbestos is a naturally occurring fibre that was widely used in the UK construction industry due to its superior properties. These traits include its resistance to heat and fire while also being extremely resilient in terms of chemical and biological break-down.

There are six types of asbestos which fall into two categories of fibre type. The two Asbestos fibre types are Serpentine (curly wavy fibres) and Amphibole (needle like fibres).

Of the six types of Asbestos the three most commercially utilised are:

• Chrysotile (White – Serpentine)
• Amosite (Brown – Amphibole)
• Crocidolite (Blue – Amphibole)

The other three types of Asbestos are amphibole fibre types and are far less common. These are:

• Anthophylite
• Tremolite
• Actinolite

Asbestos strands can be split into smaller and thinner fibres during disturbance. Asbestos mined ore will initially divide into visible strands, fibre bundles, and individual fibres. This splitting can continue to minute levels of a microscopic size. This process is unique to Asbestos and is the reason why airborne Asbestos is a threat. Asbestos fibres can become so minute that they remain airborne longer and pass undetected by the respiratory dust defences.

After countless studies it was found that prolonged inhalation of some forms of Asbestos fibres can result in a various health defects. These health conditions include a chronic lung condition known as Asbestosis which is one of the more prevalent diseases along with mesothelioma, which is a fatal form cancer which affects the linings of the lungs, heart and stomach. Asbestos related illnesses can take decades to develop after initial exposure and till this day in the UK it claims around 5000 lives per year.  

Irrespective of the fact that the importation, supply and use of all Asbestos had been banned in the UK in 1999 while the amphibole type was banned in 1985, the estimated deaths are predicted to either increase or stay around the same mark for at least the coming decade.

Asbestos in the United Kingdom is governed by The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012: 2nd Edition 2013 (CAR 2012/2013).
However, there are two strands of legal responsibility with regard to asbestos in the UK. These affect people who have duty holder responsibilities, and those who have a more general ‘duty of care’. These have different consequences:

In respect to duty holders The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012: 2nd Edition 2013 (CAR 2012/2013) confers a range of specific obligations on the individual duty holder. These include investigating for the presence of Asbestos containing materials (ACMs), recording the findings, and implementing a management plan, and notifying all those involved during any refurbishment or demolition work. Additionally, there is a need to ensure that proper asbestos awareness training is given to staff who are likely to come into contact with ACMs. This primarily affects non-domestic property, but private property can sometimes be affected (see categories of property likely to suggest duty holding responsibilities below). It is to helping these duty holders fulfil their legal obligations that Green Hive Managements Asbestos’s management services are primarily aimed. The other sections of this article mainly look at the requirements of being the duty holder.

In regards to duty of care, The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HSWA) stipulates that people working in a premises have a duty of care to ensure the immediate and on-going safety of all others in it (including; employers, employees, those in control of the premises, others who are not directly employed, the public, etc). These are wide-ranging and general responsibilities that cover all health and safety risks in the workplace, not just those from Asbestos. ‘Asbestos’ is not specifically mentioned in the act. An example: a carpenter is contracted to put up some shelves in a shop, he or she needs to make sure that area is free from the risks of ACMs before drilling into any wall to secure the shelves. This is because he or she has a duty of care under HSWA not to risk the health of anyone using the building by releasing of Asbestos fibres into the air. If any ACMs are present, precautions must be taken to ensure that safety is not compromised due to it. (Note: under CAR 2012/2013 the premises’ duty holder is also obligated to communicate the presence of any ACMs to the carpenter.)

The implementation of The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012: 2nd Edition 2013 (CAR 2012/2013), revolves around whether or not a person has any ‘duty holder’ responsibilities under Section 4. Additionally, there is a responsibility for ensuring asbestos awareness training in Section 10. Essentially, these regulations apply to non-domestic properties (given below); and so, in the majority of cases, the duty-holder aspects of the regulations do not apply to private (domestic) property. However, even without legal obligation, it makes sense to follow the essence of them.

If you are responsible for the maintenance of a premises, then you are pretty much guaranteed to be the asbestos duty holder for that building. Generally, there is likely to be only one duty holder who has been designated by all the parties involved.

They key sections concerning the duty holder within section 4 state as the duty holder:

1. You must investigate your building to determine the whereabouts of any asbestos containing materials (ACMs); when access is impossible without destruction of the surrounding structure, the demolition required to do this may be deferred, but the presence of an ACM must be presumed.
2. You must then record into an ‘asbestos register’ the location of any ACM that has been identified (whether actual or presumed), along with its type, its extent and condition, and potential risk. This should always be shown to maintenance teams and visiting contractors. Depending upon the risk analysis, ACMs may be recommended for removal or encapsulation. Else if the material is in good condition and unlikely to be damaged or disturbed, then it may be better to leave it in place and introduce a monitoring regime.
3. Unless the property is entirely free from ACMs, it will be necessary to produce an on-going management plan. This will list the actions you’re intending to take in light of the survey results. This could include removing, encapsulating or monitoring the items. All items left in situ, including any that are encapsulated, will have to be checked for deterioration in their condition, and the plan needs to detail this and assign responsibility for ensuring its implementation.

You may have in-house staff with the skills and knowledge to carry out these tasks. However, for most duty holders it will be cost effective and safer to commission a company like Green Hive Management to undertake both the surveying and the presentation of the asbestos register and management plan. If required, Green Hive Management will be happy to undertake all of the ongoing aspects of your asbestos management.

Duty holders should also constantly keep in mind that if they undertake major renovation work (knocking into partition walls, removing ceilings, etc.), a further more intrusive survey will be required (see The Refurbishment and Demolition Survey, Section 10 Asbestos Awareness). This section highlights the requirement for asbestos awareness training for any staff likely to come across ACMs.

If you are responsible for a property that falls into the following, then you are likely to be the duty-holder – remember that you may be the duty-holder even if you do not own the property.

NON-DOMESTIC PROPERTY

These property include: offices, factories, shops, hotels, etc. As a rule: this includes anywhere that the public, employees, contractors, etc. may go.

The current legislation applying to asbestos in non-domestic premises is The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012: 2nd Edition 2013 (CAR 2012/2013). For most people the essential parts of the regulations are Sections 4 and 10 (see above). If you are a duty-holder for the property under Section 4, you should comply with the regulations; failure to do so may carry stiff penalties.

APARTMENT BLOCKS AND FLATS

Even though these may be thought of as being in the domestic realm, the regulations apply to the ‘common areas’ of such buildings. Therefore, areas likely to be covered by the regulations will include any public or shared space including the: roof, attic space, stairways, corridors, boiler rooms, lift shafts, meter cupboards, etc.; as well as the outside of the building, and any shared out-buildings (for example, garages).

BUY TO LET

Owners of houses or flats that are let out on the basis that the owner maintains responsibility for repair and maintenance are also subject to the The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012: 2nd Edition 2013 (CAR 2012/2013). 

CHANGES TO THE LAW

It should be noted that the Act regarding asbestos allows for adjustments to be made to the regulations by Statutory Instrument (SI) and therefore the law may change from time-to-time without the need for new primary legislation. To become law – or ‘made’ – SIs only have to be laid before Parliament. In reality, for relatively uncontroversial areas such as asbestos, this is little more than a ‘rubber-stamping’ process. Therefore, the laws governing asbestos are liable to change with little reporting by the mainstream news media. The current position should be regularly checked (under UK law “ignorantia juris non excusat” – ignorance of the law does not excuse).

All employers have a duty to provide a safe place of work, both for their employees, but also others (visitors, the general public, etc) stated in Section 2 of HSWA 1974.

In practical terms, this entails making someone responsible for ensuring that the premises are “safe”. The common term concerning asbestos for that person is the duty holder. To begin to make the premises “safe”, the duty holder must have some idea about whether there are any risks present on their premises, a viable starting point would be to have an appropriate asbestos survey carried out.

Once an asbestos survey has been completed, the duty holder can then begin to make and implement plans and systems of work to ensure the ongoing safety of the occupants, while they are on the premises. In short, they will be managing their risk. This is usually achieved by producing an asbestos management plan.

The asbestos management plan is a formal record of the state for all the known asbestos on a site, which includes controls measures to eliminate or reduce the risk of each ACM, and perhaps a longer-term plan to remove the risk altogether, by having the asbestos removed in a controlled and competent manner. Ultimately, by removing the asbestos from a premises, you could increase its value by removing the liability associated with its presence.

Being able to demonstrate that you know and can quantify your risks regarding asbestos could reduce current and future costs and liabilities.

If you are the duty holder for a commercial property and you do not have an asbestos survey, you are liable to prosecution. Failure to comply with the new asbestos regulations may also mean that a prohibition notice is placed on your buildings - effectively closing you down until your workplace is confirmed safe.

Most higher risk work with Asbestos must be carried out by a licensed contractor. This includes: 

• Work on Asbestos sprayed coating, loose fill insulation and Asbestos lagging. 
• Work on AIB or other types of Asbestos insulation where the risk assessment demonstrates that the fibre release will be high, e.g., the material is damaged, or the work is not short duration work. 

‘Short duration’ is defined as any one person doing this type of work for less than one hour – or more than one person doing the work for no more than two hours – in any seven consecutive days. The total time spent by all workers must not exceed two person hours. This includes time spent setting up, building enclosures, cleaning and clearing up. 

Non-licensed work includes most work on Asbestos-containing textured coatings, also known as Artex, and Asbestos cement. 

Some non-licensed work, where the risk of fibre release is greater, is subject to three additional requirements: 

• Notification of work.
• Marking work areas with warning notices. 
• Medical examinations and record keeping.

This work is known as notifiable non-licensed work (NNLW). 

To decide if the work is NNLW, you will need to consider: the type of work you are going to carry out; the type of material you are going to work on; and its condition. 

Deciding what type of work you are doing:

• Maintenance – e.g., drilling holes to attach fittings or pass cables through, painting, cleaning etc. Maintenance also includes some types of removal work where it is incidental to the main task, e.g., removing an asbestos ceiling tile to allow inspection. 
• Removal – e.g., as part of a refurbishment or redesign project. 
• Encapsulation – e.g., work to enclose or seal asbestos materials in good condition. 
• Air monitoring and control, and the collection and analysis of samples. 

Considering the Asbestos type:

• Is it friable (high fibre release when disturbed)? The more friable a material is, the more likely it will release asbestos fibres when worked on and the greater the risk of exposure. Materials such as asbestos insulation are more friable than materials such as asbestos cement. 
• How firmly is the asbestos bound in a matrix (for removal work only)? ACMs where the asbestos is coated, covered or contained within another material, such as cement, paint or plastic, are considered to be firmly bound in a matrix. 

Consider the material’s condition 

Has the material been damaged or is it in poor condition, e.g., badly flooded or fire damaged? Will the material’s matrix be destroyed when worked on, e.g., deteriorating textured coatings (Artex) with gel or steam? 

Once you’ve considered these three elements, the Decision flow chart will help you to decide which category your work with asbestos is or check the HSE website for additional assistance before you start. 

In summary, most work with firmly bound materials in good condition such as asbestos cement, bitumen, plastic, resin, rubber, roofing felt, paper linings, cardboard, textiles, gaskets, washers and rope etc, will not need to be notified. Short duration maintenance work involving AlB which is in good condition, and removal of small areas of textured coatings to support installation/replacement of smoke alarms and light fittings, will not normally need to be notified. 

NNLW will normally include removal of textured coatings where the material is deteriorated, e.g., using steaming and gelling methods, and short duration removal of AlB as part of refurbishment. 

Each Asbestos essentials task sheet will give advice on whether the work is notifiable.

The following flow chart will help you to decide who should do the work, and to determine if it is licensed work or non-licensed work. If you determine the work is non-licensed, you will then need to decide if it is notifiable non-licensed work (NNLW).