Government Report: EPA Failed to Properly Monitor Asbestos in Schools

A recent report from the Environmental Protection Agency’s internal watchdog shows the agency isn’t doing enough to minimize asbestos risks in U.S. schools. From 2011 through 2015, the EPA conducted only 13 percent of the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA) inspections it was responsible for nationwide, according to a report released Monday by the EPA’s Office of Inspector General. States with jurisdiction over their own inspections performed 87 percent, more than six times that of federal implementation jurisdictions. “Our objective was to determine whether the EPA was performing sufficient compliance inspections of schools to reduce asbestos exposure,” the Office of Inspector General report reads. “Even though the EPA was responsible for conducting AHERA compliance inspections for the majority of states, it conducted fewer inspections overall than the states responsible for their own inspections.” Asbestos exposure is a common concern in U.S. schools. AHERA, which became law in 1986, requires local educational agencies to inspect their school buildings for asbestos-containing materials, prepare management plans and perform appropriate response actions to ensure the safety of the more than 50 million students and 7 million teachers and staff. Students and faculty at schools built before 1980 are especially at risk, as those structures contain a wide range of asbestos building materials that may become friable during maintenance work, renovations and ...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Source Type: news