Historic Lamar County Courthouse to Get Asbestos Removal, Restoration

Near Hattiesburg, Mississippi, the historic Lamar County Courthouse, built in 1905, is slated for a makeover, but not until contractors and architects, led by Robert Parker Adams - who toured the site during the last week in January - determine how much asbestos is present, and how much licensed asbestos remediation contractors will charge the county to remove it.

This month, according to Lamar County Administrator Chuck Bennett, county work crews will finish removing the equipment associated with the courthouse's previous life as a municipal law center. This includes the tape recorders, telephones, fax machines, law books, tables and chairs.

Some of it will be salvaged, some tossed. After that, the asbestos remediation project, budgeted at about $40,000, will be open to bidders. Once a bid is accepted, the asbestos removal will take from one to three months to complete.

A study of the courthouse has already determined where the asbestos is located, so bidders will be asked to read the report, evaluate the scope of the work required, and present their estimates.

As Bennett notes, the asbestos identified so far is not a large amount, but its removal - which is contingent on not damaging the historic structure - could be a "delicate" process. The cost of asbestos removal, however, is well within the $275,000 the county has budgeted for courthouse work for fiscal year 2009-2010.

The asbestos removal is not the most expensive step in the renovation, but it is certainly the most important step, at least in terms of county worker health. Asbestos, widely used during most of the last century in products as diverse as insulation, sheet flooring and acoustical ("popcorn") ceiling sprays, is the only known cause of mesothelioma, and a single exposure to aging, broken or otherwise damaged asbestos-containing material can trigger it.

Once asbestos fibers reach the mesothelial tissue surrounding the heart, lungs and abdominal organs, they cause irritation, lesions, and may eventually create a tumor which develops slowly over the course of the next two to five decades, finally producing symptoms of sufficient severity that sufferers feel compelled to consult a physician.

Mesothelial tumors of long-standing provide very poor prognoses, typically a year to 18 months to live. Even those caught earlier than the typical fifth decade and treated aggressively with radiation and/or surgery and/or chemotherapy rarely respond with more than a four-month improvement, or a survival rate of about 21 months. In spite of this, many physicians choose radiation and surgery to reduce the size of such tumors, which - while not extending lifetimes by much - provides palliative care in terms of improved breathing and less pain.

The courthouse will also get a facelift, consisting of new sheetrock, paneling, and new floors and windows, as well as some badly needed technology upgrades. Underneath the new exterior, county workers can be assured that the courthouse is as safe as a century-old building can be made to be.

Source: Hattiesburg American

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