Hazardous material surveys are often referred to as pre-demolition surveys. Why would you need such a thing? In BC there are many hazardous materials that pose a threat to you, your family or your employees. While commonly heard, hazardous materials such as asbestos are more widely a serious health concern, this survey however may reveal other hazardous materials that could potentially pose just as serious as a threat.
For instance, other hazardous materials we inspect for are as follows: Lead, Silica, ODS, PCB’s, Hantavirus, Mercury, and mold. Lead is another commonly heard hazardous material, but is it regulated? If you look under the Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S) Regulation section 6.60 there is a statement that in a risk assessment finds that a worker is to be exposed to lead, an exposure control plan is to be made and implemented by a qualified person. Clearly then the identification of these hazardous materials is important. For more information visit WorkSafeBC.
In BC it is required by law to have this survey completed before you begin your project. It ensures the safety of everyone involved and makes for an easy and smooth renovation or demolition. The laws can be found under the OH&S Regulation section 6.5 Identification, here it requires employers and owners to ensure all asbestos containing materials are identified.
Where to find help
If looking for more information on this service you can visit our website or give us a call and we would be happy to discuss with you further the benefits of this survey. As a homeowner you want to ensure that the contractor you hire out to complete any proposed plans on your home is having this service done. This will show you the true nature of a contractor’s conscientious effort to do an A+ quality job in your renovation while protecting the health of you and your family.
Aside from the aforementioned reason to ensure your contractor is having this pre-demolition survey completed, there is another reason. Its stated in section 6.7 of the same OH&S regulation that they must have controls put in place for any and all friable asbestos-containing materials. These controls are as listed: removal, enclosure and encapsulation. This is so that all friable asbestos is no longer a risk to anyone. This same section makes mention of not allowing any work to take place that would damage any existing asbestos materials unless precaution’s have been put in place.
As we know it can be a stressful time to have a renovation completed, why not take the edge off and get started right by first having this hazardous materials survey completed. We would be happy to help.