Alternative Asbestos Control Method Program
Our Team
- Adele Cardenas Malott
Project Manager, Dallas - Roger Wilmoth
Project Manager, Cincinnati
National Resources
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is announcing the availability for review and comment of two draft reports titled, Evaluation of the Alternative Asbestos Control Method at Site Two (AACM2) for Demolition of Asbestos-Containing Buildings, and Evaluation of the Alternative Asbestos Control Method at Site Three (AACM3) for Demolition of Asbestos-Containing Buildings. These reports were prepared by EPA's Office of Research and Development.
The final EPA reports for AACM#2 and AACM#3 will be posted simultaneously with the final peer review report.
Comparison of the Alternative Asbestos Control Method at Site One and the National Emissions Standard for Hazardous Air Pollutants Method for Demolition of Asbestos-Containing Buildings - Final Report (PDF) (229 pp, 7.2 MB, About PDF)
Evaluation of the Alternative Asbestos Control Method at Site Two (AACM2) for Demolition of Asbestos-Containing Buildings (157 pp, 2.8 MB, About PDF)
Executive Summary of Site Two (4 pp, 112 KB, About PDF)
Evaluation of the Alternative Asbestos Control Method at Site Three (AACM3) for Demolition of Asbestos-Containing Buildings (193 pp, 4.2 MB, About PDF)
Executive Summary of Site Three (4 pp, 89 KB, About PDF)
During a two-year period, beginning in 2003, more than 166,000 asbestos-contaminated buildings were demolished or renovated nationwide. EPA’s Office of Research and Development and EPA Region 6 are engaged in a research project to evaluate whether an Alternative Asbestos Control Method can reliably meet the current emission standard while speeding up efforts to demolish abandoned, dilapidated buildings.
Why Is an Alternative Asbestos Control Method Potentially Needed?
Abandoned buildings in need of demolition dot the landscape in communities nationwide, damaging neighborhoods and inhibiting redevelopment. They can be havens for crime, unsafe shelters for the homeless, magnets for children and potential sources of harmful asbestos. When these buildings contain asbestos—as many do because of the common use of asbestos in building materials—communities, law enforcement and local government officials have to spend a disproportionate about of time, energy and revenues addressing the problem. Often, the outcome is that these buildings remain vacant for years and then collapse.
EPA experts believe that developing an Alternative Asbestos Control Method for use during demolition offers an opportunity to better safeguard citizens’ health and support redevelopment efforts. It is important to understand that the asbestos emission standard that currently applies during building demolition will not change—the alternative method would be held to the same emission standard, it would just be a different way of getting there.
Read more about the Alternative Asbestos Control Method
Alternative Asbestos Control Method Pilot Research Projects
For more information about the Alternative Asbestos Control Method pilot research projects:
- Pilot Project #1—Fort Chaffee, Arkansas
- Pilot Project #2—Fort Chaffee, Arkansas
- Pilot Project #3—Fort Worth, Texas
Reports on Pilot Project #2 and #3 will be published in the summer of 2008, after completion of the independent peer review and associated public comment. Information on the peer review process and public involvement, and to offer comments. Information for asbestos trainers and contractors is available here.
Background Information on the Alternative Asbestos Control Method
- Alternative Asbestos Control Method - Background (PDF) (6 pp, 63 KB, About PDF)
- A two-page fact sheet (PDF) on the EPA study that looks for better asbestos removal technology is available for printing (2 pp, 54 KB, About PDF)
- Q & A for the Alternative Asbestos Control Method
- Kidde NF3000 Wetting Agent Description and Material Safety Data Sheet (PDF) (18 pp, 199 KB, About PDF)