Pinal County, Arizona school finds asbestos

Coolidge Unified SD Finds Asbestos

In the autumn of 2008, the Coolidge Unified School District #21, Pinal County, Arizona, opened a new high school on Gary and Silverdale roads, by the San Tan Heights Community.

In June of this year, the district announced the finding of asbestos-containing materials in 24 classrooms in buildings B and D at West Elementary School. The samples have been described by the testing lab as "hot", according to Dr. Kenneth Smith, executive director of business and planning for the district.

A hot sample indicates asbestos that has become friable, and needs to be removed or the building closed. Fortunately, the district recently sold $16 million in bonds to make such needed repairs.

Since the discovery, West Elementary has been closed and the district has hired Scottsdale-based FM Group, a facility consulting group that specializes in the built environment (i.e., buildings already in existence as opposed to new construction), to prepare a district-wide Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA) plan to deal with the asbestos discovery.

The Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act, a 1986 law established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is a provision of the Toxic Substances Control Act, or TSCA, that governs how schools address asbestos issues.

The law applies to all schools, whether public, private, charter or affiliated with a religious group, and mandates schools to: Perform an initial asbestos inspection and follow that up every three years; develop and maintain an asbestos management plan, and keep a copy at the school; disseminate the plan, and notify of its accessibility, yearly to all parents, teachers and employee organizations, and notify same of any asbestos abatement actions planned or taken; Designate a primary contact person to insure these responsibilities are met, and to liaise with the various groups; perform periodic inspections of known (or suspected) asbestos-containing materials to insure their stability; provide maintenance staff with asbestos awareness training; and hire or train accredited asbestos professionals to inspect, respond and prepare asbestos management plans.

The difficulty with West Elementary School, and the district at large, is not that they have not adequately prepared themselves to manage the asbestos hazard, but that a 1983 asbestos remediation project did not in fact get all the asbestos, as promised. This, in turn, outlines a larger problem; that not all asbestos remediation firms are reliable. This is why the EPA recommends that remediation and inspection (both pre- and post-) be conducted by separate entities.

In spite of the report of "hot" asbestos, air tests conducted show that West Elementary does not have airborne asbestos, which represents the greatest danger in terms of asbestosis, lung and digestive system cancers, and mesothelioma - all diseases indirectly or directly associated with asbestos.

Now the only obstacle that remains is insuring that the asbestos remediation is completed before teaching staff returns. This seems like a huge obstacle, though, given the extent of asbestos contamination within the school.

Several school board members have expressed their desire to see a "Plan B" in case remediation isn't complete by the beginning of the next school year, and all are aware of the importance of communicating with parents, students and staff regarding any ongoing asbestos concerns.

The asbestos remediation at West Elementary is expected to cost about $300,000. The Coolidge Unified School District is requesting $120,000 in emergency deficiency funds from the Arizona School Facilities Board - an amount above and beyond their budget, even with the $16-million bond issue.

Sources: East Valley Tribune, TownNews.com, FM Group

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