Marco Island residents want to know what the effects of a recently mishandled large scale asbestos abatement project are going to be on their community. So far, they haven’t received any direct answers. The United States Environmental Protection Agency has slapped the city as well as the contractor responsible for the project, a highway reconstruction project, with six separate asbestos safe handling regulation violations.
The EPA’s involvement came as a result of an anonymous tip-off, that as of yet has not been confirmed. Among the violations cited are the failure to remove asbestos materials before a demolition effort, the failure to properly dispose of contaminated materials, and a failure to have the work site thoroughly inspected for toxic materials. Astoundingly, the contractor responsible for the vast majority of the project is also being accused of failing to have any toxic substance professionals involved in the project at all, a violation that seems outright sloppy in today’s industrial atmosphere.
While the EPA’s claims thus far appear somewhat vague and haven’t been followed up decisively, asbestos contamination is something worth worrying about. Microscopic asbestos fibers have been conclusively linked with several respiratory conditions and several different forms of cancer, including a particularly aggressive cancer of the lining of the lungs known as mesothelioma.
The asbestos in question was present at the Marcos Island Collier Boulevard work site in the form of a strengthening additive to cement piping. Quality Enterprises, the primary contractor for the highway rebuilding contract, allegedly broke up asbestos containing cement pipe and left it exposed without any sort of testing beforehand or containment measure afterwards.
Large scale asbestos exposure issues are becoming more and more commonplace. The problem does’t lie with increasingly sloppy or sly contractors as much as with increased efforts from the EPA to collect information about asbestos related projects and crack down on violators. While state and federal regulations are fairly strict on paper, the EPA’s ability to follow up with real world audits is limited to its comparatively tiny staff allocated for such projects. At present, a virtually insignificant amount of potentially hazardous projects are actually audited for proper adherence to safety regulations.
While incidents such as the Marco Island Collier Boulevard project may seem sporadically uncovered and ill-handled, they may be the kind of stimulus the EPA needs to step up its game.
