Thanks to the Maine Legislature’s approval of a $7-million, 10-year revenue bond, the University of Maine, or UMaine, is that much closer to a renovation project that has been on the table for almost a decade.
The project isn’t merely cosmetic, however. Both UMaine’s field house and its gymnasium are almost a century old, dating back to the 1920s, and contain significant amounts of asbestos.
Long considered the heyday of asbestos use, this period (from the 1920s to the 1960s) was a time when asbestos, then considered a miracle compound – capable of resisting very high temperatures and chemical degradation – was widely used in a number of industries, including construction, shipbuilding, railroad transport and even the heating industry.
Products containing asbestos manufactured during most of the last century include floor tiles and tile glues, the felt backing on said tiles (and sheet flooring), wall patching compound, acoustical ceiling sprays and ceiling tiles, roofing tiles, cement-asbestos siding, insulation blankets and batts used to shield boilers and furnaces (and their pipe or duct work, notably on ships and train engines), and the insulative products used around older residential furnaces and ductwork.
By the 1970s, most health officials were aware of the link between asbestos and diseases like mesothelioma, and the general consensus was to eliminate it from as many domestic products as possible. This attitude was supported by the U.S Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) 1989 ban – a ban later overturned at the behest of the asbestos lobby to allow at least one percent of asbestos in products made in the U.S. (by weight or volume), with some usages still exceeding five percent.
In fact, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, this country imported 1,880 tons of asbestos between 2007 and 2008, with major use continuing in construction materials and auto repair parts.
Efforts have been made to curtail domestic asbestos use. In 1994, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA, extended the protection by adopting National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) recommendations handed down in 1980. NIOSH, an arm of the Centers for Disease Control, recommended no more than 0.1 fibers per cubic centimeter in air, or the same in a milliliter of water.
For UMaine, a project long placed on hold could begin as early as this summer, and once initiated could be completed within 18 months. The project also includes removing a rubberized indoor track which contains mercury, an environmental toxin if not a carcinogen like asbestos. In fact, the only area not to be tackled is Wallace Pool.
Private contributors to the UMaine renovation include best-selling novelist Stephen King, and $1 million from star basketball player Paul Douglas Collins.
The bond is essentially a loan taken out by the university with a 10-year payback. In addition to the very essential asbestos remediation portion of the renovation, UMaine also hopes to build a new, basketball-only arena to replace aging Memorial Gymnasium. The entire renovation is expected to cost between $12.5 and $15 million.
Once the renovation is completed, UMaine athletes, students, coaches and teachers can all breathe a little easier.
Sources: Enviroblog.org, Environmental Working Group, AthleticBusiness.com
