More Care Needed With Asbestos Contaminated Roof Tiles

More Care Needed With Asbestos Contaminated Roof Tiles

Asbestos contaminated roof tiles are regularly arriving at New Zealand scrap metal yards when they should be safely sent to landfills, according to the Scrap Metal Recycling Association of New Zealand (SMRANZ).

Association president Korina Kirk said SMRANZ members were aware of the need to check roofing tiles arriving at their yards and were disturbed by the number of potentially contaminated tiles people were wanting to trade.

“The Roofing Association of New Zealand and the New Zealand Demolition and Asbestos Association have both confirmed for us that their members have been informed of the risk.”

“If you want to remove metal tiles from your roof, you really need to use a professional company that will identify tiles that could contain asbestos and dispose of them correctly,” Korina said.

“People needing to remove asbestos-containing materials should use an approved person, who holds a permit, to dispose of the material at an approved site. There are a limited number of landfills that can receive asbestos. Sadly some unprofessional people would prefer to avoid this cost and put people at risk,” she said.

The tiles that include asbestos are mastic or bitumen-based, pressed metal roof tiles that were produced prior to the early 1980s. All mastic or bitumen-based pressed metal roof tiles should be suspected of containing asbestos but among those most likely to be affected are Decramastic and early Harveytiles.

Special care needs to be taken when carrying out maintenance on the tiles or removing them because asbestos fibres may become airborne and breathed into the lungs. “We have however been told that there are no risks associated with leaving asbestos-containing tiles on your roof, provided they are in good condition and left undisturbed,” Korina said.

The only way to confirm if your tiles contain asbestos is to have them tested by an accredited laboratory.

ENDS

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