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New Jersey Hits City of Paterson with 13 Asbestos Violations

By on Tuesday, April 23rd, 2013 | No Comments

The city of Paterson, New Jersey put the health of several employees in danger when they allowed them to remove asbestos-containing tiles from municipal property on Ellison Street late last year, says the state department of labor. Now, after an investigation of the incident and a probe of other municipal facilities, the agency has determined that Paterson committed a total of 43 OSHA violations, 13 of them related to asbestos removal. The city now faces potential fines of $4500 per violation per day, an article in the The Record reports. It is unclear as to whether any of those fines have been imposed at this time. Paterson’s health department halted renovations on the 2nd floor of 133 Ellison Street last December when it was determined that there were issues concerning asbestos exposure . The area where the work was occurring has remained sealed off since that time. A private, licensed abatement company will be hired to complete the asbestos removal . The situation involved both municipal employees as well as inmates involved in the local Passaic County Sheriff’s Labor Assistance Program. The sheriff’s department is also conducting an investigation into the incident. In the meantime, those who may have been exposed to the asbestos tiles are concerned about whether or not they might develop an asbestos-related disease in the future. The material is a known carcinogen, responsible for diseases such as mesothelioma , which attacks the lining around the lungs. Paterson Mayor Jeffrey Jones believes the city must now implement a training program that will teach employees to identify lead and asbestos when working in old city-owned properties, where the materials are commonplace. “We don’t have the luxury to not know,” Jones said. “We don’t want to put anyone in harm’s way.”

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Investigation Continues in Paterson, NJ Asbestos Incident

By on Wednesday, April 10th, 2013 | No Comments

As authorities in Paterson, New Jersey continue to investigate why prison inmates and untrained municipal employees were charged with the task of removing asbestos materials from municipal offices that were undergoing renovation, the city has finally decided to seek out a private licensed contractor to remove and disposal of the toxic debris. “This is part of being in compliance with what (the state) requested,” Paterson Public Works Director Christopher Coke said, noting that the city council will meet next week to vote on a resolution that charges them with the task of gathering bids to complete the project. In the meantime, many still wonder what city officials were thinking when they drafted inmates and employees not licensed to handle asbestos to start the job several months ago. The city’s law department and the state’s labor department have confirmed that they are involved in the investigation as is Sheriff Richard Berdnik, who is interested in learning the facts because the inmates used in the project were part of his Sheriff’s Labor Assistance Program (SLAP). “Our guys weren’t equipped to do that and we weren’t educated to do that,” said Michael Jackson, a member of the executive board of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, Local 2272, referring to the municipal workers. “The city tried to cut costs and it put people in danger.” Coke claims, however, that the workers were never in danger of asbestos exposure . He says all employees were given masks and gloves while working inside the Ellison Street structure and that air and dust samples were taken and came back negative. Others say that Coke brought in a fan to clear the dust before the samples were taken. Now, the inmates and municipal workers remain worried about their health, aware that inhaling asbestos fibers could eventually cause severe respiratory problems and issues such as the development of mesothelioma cancer .

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Asbestos Fines Levied at Old Pfizer Site

By on Tuesday, March 12th, 2013 | No Comments

The Morris Plains Patch reports that “fines levied by the New Jersey Department of Labor for violations during asbestos abatement” caused a work stoppage at the old Pfizer Pharmaceuticals facility on Route 53 in Northern New Jersey late last month. According to the article, contractors who were charged with the task of removing asbestos were ordered to leave the site when it was determined that their well being may have been at risk due to exposure to asbestos materials. Though the violations are still under investigation, it appears that perhaps the original contractor was not licensed to perform asbestos removal , which prompted the site developer – M&M Realty Partners – to write a letter to the state in regards to the violations. Since that time, a licensed asbestos contractor has resumed asbestos removal at the location after Adel Merdan requested a waiver of the 10-day notification process that would have stalled the work further. “As you are aware, our prior demolition contractor, Metro Industrial Wrecking and Environmental Contracts and their asbestos abatement subcontractors, Dennison and ATC, started asbestos abatement on the above-referenced project,” Merdan explained. “However, due to the fines levied by the NJ Department of Labor for violations during asbestos abatement, those contractors had to be removed from the project.” So far, the developer and the contractors have refused to comment on the situation, neither admitting nor denying violations of state asbestos laws, which demand that only licensed, trained asbestos abatement professionals can remove the carcinogenic material. That’s because old, damaged asbestos must be removed in a certain way so as not to release dangerous, sharp fibers into the air, where they can be inhaled and later cause diseases such as mesothelioma cancer , a rare form of the disease that kills about 3,000 Americans each year.

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FreedomWorks tea party group nearly falls apart in fight between old and new guard

By on Wednesday, December 26th, 2012 | No Comments

The day after Labor Day, just as campaign season was entering its final frenzy, FreedomWorks, the Washington-based tea party organization, went into free fall.

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EPA Helps Oklahoma Monitor Asbestos in Schools and State Buildings

By on Friday, October 12th, 2012 | No Comments

In order to help reduce asbestos exposure in schools and state buildings throughout Oklahoma, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded nearly a quarter-million dollars in funds to the Oklahoma Department of Labor to assist them in carrying out asbestos-related inspections. According to a Fox 23 News story, the funds will be used by the Dept. of Labor to complete numerous audit inspections in local schools throughout the upcoming school year. The department believes that asbestos inspections are an excellent way to urge school districts to comply with the EPA’s Asbestos in Schools rules, which includes monitoring the presence of asbestos materials and their condition in schools throughout the state. The EPA promotes “in place” management of asbestos-containing materials at schools and other public buildings around the country. That means that while asbestos doesn’t necessarily need to be removed from theses facilities, there should always be a written report filed on site concerning the location of asbestos materials and there should be a trained individual in each facility who can recognize asbestos and can respond properly to any asbestos-related emergencies that could result in asbestos exposure if not handled in a safe manner. Part of the Oklahoma Department of Labor funds will also be used to insure that asbestos removal workers are properly trained to do their job and licensed by the state to carry out abatement projects. Removal not performed by a trained professional could result in improper handling of toxic materials and the spread of dangerous asbestos fibers. Asbestos has long been a known carcinogen and anyone who inhales these toxic fibers could be a candidate for developing such diseases as pleural mesothelioma , a cancer that attacks the lining of the lungs. It is very difficult to treat and many victims die within a year of diagnosis .

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Asbestos at Elementary School Cleaned Up after Department of Labor Issues Warning

By on Friday, August 31st, 2012 | No Comments

Just a month ago, the Massachusetts Department of Labor Standards issued a stern written warning to the James F. Peebles Elementary School in Bourne, Massachusetts, ordering the school to clean areas of the building that contained asbestos before students returned from summer vacation. This is the second such warning issued to Peebles in three years, reports an article in The Cape Cod Times. According to the article, in accordance with the request from the Labor Department, a crew of contracted workers has spent a week cleaning the school while others removed tiles and other building materials that contained hazardous asbestos. Air quality testing followed and school officials say the levels of asbestos found in the air were more than acceptable, allowing the building to open in time for the start of school this week. “The problem was a combination of work not being done as required and a lack of paperwork documenting what had been completed,” said Christopher Hyldburg, a member of the school committee. However, problems remain and teachers have been warned about potentially disturbing asbestos that remains in the building. For example, windows with asbestos-containing glazing were broken in the cleaning process and have not yet been replaced. Teachers have been asked not to open the windows or otherwise manipulate them until they’ve been replaced, for fear of spreading asbestos dust around the classrooms. Asbestos is a known carcinogen and even a small amount of asbestos exposure can result in the development of diseases such as mesothelioma cancer . Nonetheless, teachers, staff, and parents are being told there’s nothing to be worried about. Representatives of the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection have visited “at least four times,” stated Laura Scena, subcommittee chairwoman of the Bourne, Massachusetts School District. She’s confident that it’s now safe to enter the building.

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New method provides fast, accurate, low cost analysis of BRCA gene mutations in breast cancer

By on Wednesday, August 8th, 2012 | No Comments

Individuals with mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes have a significantly higher risk of developing breast and ovarian cancers. Families at risk have been seeking genetic testing and counseling based on their mutation carrier status, but the standard method of direct sequencing is labor-intensive, costly, and it only targets a part of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes. A group of scientists has now developed a new sequencing approach to provide a more effective method of BRCA1/2 mutational analysis.

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Next Generation Sequencing Approach Provides Fast, Accurate, Low Cost Analysis Of BRCA Gene Mutations In Breast Cancer

By on Tuesday, August 7th, 2012 | No Comments

Individuals with mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes have a significantly higher risk of developing breast and ovarian cancers. Families at risk have been seeking genetic testing and counseling based on their mutation carrier status, but the standard method of direct sequencing is labor-intensive, costly, and it only targets a part of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes…

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Rudd to propose asbestos ban

By on Monday, December 5th, 2011 | No Comments

Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd wants the Labor government to lead the world in securing a global treaty to ban asbestos use and trade. Mr Rudd will move the asbestos motion on the last day of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) national conference on Sunday afternoon. The motion, obtained by AAP, flags a global alliance convening to discuss asbestos hazards at an Australian conference next year. Australia totally banned the use and trade of asbestos in 2003 in the wake of the James Hardie scandal and rising cases of mesothelioma in Australia. Canada and Russia are the top two asbestos traders worldwide and have copped criticism in recent months for selling the mineral used in building materials to developing countries. Meanwhile, the Labor conference will also debate whether to add condemnation of human rights abuses under the Fijian military regime to the party’s policy platform. At the moment only Burma and Zimbabwe rate a mention in the human rights blacklist of the Labor policy platform. ACTU president Ged Kearney will move the resolution on Fiji on Sunday afternoon blasting draconian decrees that have removed human rights and workers rights. The resolution will call on businesses trading with the island nation not to profit from the military dictatorship and singles out Qantas and Jetstar. Qantas owns almost half of Fiji’s national airline Air Pacific. Ms Kearney said Air Pacific has links to elements of the military regime. She accused the Bainimarama government of harassing and arresting trade union leaders and trying to break the union movement. Australia has sanctions against Fiji and Ms Kearney said the federal government should consider expanding the measures. Ms Kearney will travel to the island next week with a delegation of trade unionists. She has written to Commodore Frank Bainimarama requesting a meeting and wasn’t sure whether the delegation would receive a warm or frosty welcome. The ACTU is considering a campaign to discourage Australians from holidaying in Fiji, she said. ‘It does hurt ordinary Fijians,’ she said. ‘But we’re working very closely with the Fijian trade union movement and community and we feel we have their full support, they want change and aren’t happy with the human rights violations that are occurring. they understand it will take a struggle to fix that.’ Ms Kearney said the ACTU was confident the resolution would be supported on the floor. SHARE THIS ARTICLE: Posts Related to Rudd to propose asbestos ban Australia's duty to kill this dust devil Fighter to the end … anti-asbestos campaigner Bernie Banton / Pic: Alan Pryke Source: the Advertiser FEW of us will forget the heroic struggle of … Australian Researcher Hopes to Help Mesothelioma Patients Worldwide Victoria, Australia – Associate Professor Manfred Beilharz of the University of Western Australia has been researching different ways to stimulate an individual’s immune system in … Former railway worker receives payout for mesothelioma A recent news article highlighted the story of a man recently diagnosed with mesothelioma. According to reports, he has received a considerably large payout from … Asbestos disease awareness week events MELBOURNE 17 November 2011. Asbestos support groups, unions, lawyers and community organisations will be involved in range of activities next week to mark National Asbestos … Asbestos Think Tanks Try to Shape Policy Debate Patient advocate groups aren’t the only ones taking up the fight to have tighter regulations on asbestos. Some prestigious scientific research groups and think tanks …

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Deaths/causes | PUBLIC RECORDS | Sept. 6 to Oct. 11

By on Sunday, October 23rd, 2011 | No Comments

… 11; methicillin-resistant staphylococcus, aureus pneumonia, metastatic prostate cancer Cullum, Roberta Jean; 72, Evansville, Sept. 30; … labor Wood, Diane; 71, Evansville, Sept. 28; colon cancer …

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