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Many organisations across the United Kingdom make the mistake of neglecting proper asbestos air testing for their properties due to a belief that asbestos is a problem that belongs to the past. The erroneous nature of such a claim has been demonstrated once again, with the admission that close to 700 council buildings in Worcestershire are contaminated with asbestos. Worcestershire County Council has recently admitted that nearly half of its 1,500 properties contain the potentially fatal material, which can cause conditions such as mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer if its fibres are breathed in. The Council admitted that properties such as schools, libraries and offices contained the deadly fibres, but said that even removal would be unsafe at this point, describing it as “not an option”. Councillor Peter McDonald, Labour group leader at the county council, stated: “Asbestos is not a problem of the past, it's a problem of the present. Six hundred and ninety-nine is a heck of a large figure, it should be a priority to remove asbestos from these buildings to reduce the number of people dying." Although the true dangers of asbestos have now been known for some time, it continues to kill thousands in the UK each year due to symptoms taking between 20 and 50 years to manifest themselves. The material was commonly used as pipe insulation right up to the 1980s, and doctors warn that the number of fatalities has not yet peaked. If you own a property, it is your responsibility to safeguard the health of everyone inside by making sure that deadly asbestos particles are not present. The only 100% accurate way to do so is to use a UKAS accredited asbestos air testing and asbestos Awareness Training service. If you haven’t put your building through expert testing, it is considered to contain asbestos under the law. If you need to have asbestos air testing carried out, don’t hesitate to contact one of the team at Trident Surveying today. Our trained personnel will carry out the service before sending a sample to an independent UKAS accredited laboratory. We can then confirm whether asbestos is present, so that you can consider the best next steps.
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