Officials have issued a warning in Warrensburg, New York to stay clear of a work site next to Potter’s Diner, a local eatery. The property, which was recently the site of a local motel, may be contaminated with asbestos fibers making it a potentially serious health hazard. State officials claimed earlier this month that proper asbestos testing and asbestos abatement were not performed during the demolition, which may have resulted in dangerous contamination. Several violations have been issued to Richard Galusha, an owner of the property.
“How would anyone know that they’re supposed to have an asbestos survey done?” Richard said, claiming he was unaware of any asbestos testing requirements.
Galusha’s unawareness of the state’s requirements and his shock in receiving several citations for handling the project incorrectly highlight the states’s shortcomings in the ongoing efforts to decrease dangerous asbestos contamination. While strict state and federal laws exist necessitating asbestos testing and the hiring of properly licensed workers if asbestos abatement is required, knowledge of those laws and subsequently adherence to them is frighteningly slim.
As asbestos contamination proves to be a more and more serious problem, keeping property managers and owners aware of asbestos concerns and holding contractors fully accountable for proper asbestos testing should be the state’s responsibility. The light handed punishment of errant contractors and an inability to effectively spot-check the adherence of more than a tiny fraction of new renovation and demolition projects certainly contribute to the problem at large.
With diagnoses of mesothelioma, a fatal cancer caused by asbestos, still on the rise in North America and throughout the world, the cost of relaxed regulations and minimal awareness is certainly high. The Environmental Protection Agency has stated that there is no safe level of asbestos exposure, but with mesothelioma taking anywhere from a few years to several decades to fully develop the danger of asbestos often loses its sense of urgency.
For every demolition project like Galusha’s that comes under the helter-skelter scrutiny of the State Labor Department, several others are passed by. Meanwhile, Galusha will be held fully accountable for failing to procure an asbestos test and hiring contractors that weren’t properly licensed for asbestos abatement.
“We were trying to fix the town,” Galusha complained to local news agencies, “they inspect the site and they give you a permit. Nobody said anything about asbestos.”
