Asbestos

The purpose of identifying asbestos in buildings is to prevent, or if this is not reasonably practicable, minimise exposure for workers and other people on the premises. To achieve this, PCBUs need information about whether asbestos is, or is likely to be, present in the buildings. This will help the PCBU assess the risks it presents and work out how to manage those risks.

The Health and Safety at Work (Asbestos) Regulations 2016 now require the principal and the board as a PCBU to consider and then survey the presence of asbestos across their site if they know, or should reasonably know, that asbestos is present. If asbestos, or asbestos containing materials (ACMs), are found to be present, an asbestos management plan is required. Further, whenever property work is planned which will involve either the demolition or partial demolition of existing structures, or remedial building work that will disrupt existing buildings, then the presence of asbestos must be considered.

If situations exist where the presence of asbestos, or ACMs, is considered possible or likely, then a survey by suitably qualified persons must be completed.

An asbestos survey will:

•         help the school manage asbestos in the workplace
•         provide accurate information about the location, amount and condition of asbestos and ACM
•         help decide if remedial action is required

The survey information is used to prepare a record of the location of any asbestos, as well as an asbestos management plan for the workplace. The asbestos survey also identifies all the asbestos and ACM that needs to be removed before starting refurbishment or demolition work. Complete guidance to the required actions relating to the identification and removal of asbestos are laid out in detail on the Worksafe website.

Asbestos Management Plan

When a survey by a qualified person has identified the presence of asbestos or ACMs the following records are completed:

         ·            Identification, location, condition, quantity, and monitoring plan for any ACM is recorded in the school’s hazard register

• Where the asbestos has been identified - specific location, including building element and elevation, e.g. Classroom 2, Block C, external cladding, external elevations
• How you plan to manage the asbestos risks (remove it, encapsulate it with a false wall or paint, leave it alone as it is in good condition, etc) and the reasons for those decisions
• What procedures you will follow when work is to be undertaken
• How you will record incidents or emergencies involving asbestos
• A timetable for managing asbestos exposure risks considering priorities and dates for removal, reviews, circumstances and activities that could affect the timing of action
• A timetable for reviewing and revising the asbestos management plan and asbestos documentation within five years
• All information recorded is shared with contractors working on site

The Ministry of Education has a template for the creation of an Asbestos Management Plan.

Note: If asbestos is present and it is confirmed that the condition of the material will either pose a risk to health in its current form or if it is disturbed as a result of work about to commence, the work area should be isolated immediately and appropriate warning signage displayed until the risk has been effectively managed.

Asbestos Containing Materials

Large amounts of Asbestos Containing Materials, (ACMs), were used for a wide range of construction purposes in new and refurbished buildings until 2000. This means there are many buildings in New Zealand that contain asbestos or ACM. If the ACM is in good condition, and unlikely to be disturbed, it may not present a significant risk. However, if the ACM is in poor condition, disturbed or damaged, asbestos fibres are released into the air. If breathed in, these fibres can cause serious lung diseases, including cancers.

Workers who disturb the fabric of buildings during maintenance, refurbishment, repair, installation and related activities are exposed to asbestos every time they unknowingly work on ACM, or carry out work without assessing and managing the risks.

Equal Employment Opportunities Reporting

In the heady days following Tomorrow’s Schools, every board and principal in the country was tasked with developing its school’s own set of policies, which meant coming to grips with the requirements of the Ministry and the new legislation – namely the 1989 Education Act.

After an initial burst of enthusiasm which saw some churning out literally hundreds of policies, things calmed somewhat during the early 2000s.

However, it was clear to schools that many of these statements would be required, and one of the most vexing was the school’s EEO policy. Schools were required to appoint an EEO officer, and to record compliance with all things EEO in the school’s annual report. This included surveying staff annually, and then maintaining a database of staff needs and issues.

More recently the Ministry of Education has removed any reference to reporting EEO compliance in the Annual Report. This is slightly problematic as the requirement still sits squarely within the State Sector Act 1988, and is quite specific.

Here’s section 77A (1):

General principles

(1) Every employer in the education service must—

a)        operate a personnel policy that complies with the principle of being a good employer; and

b)       make that policy (including the equal employment opportunities programme) available to its employees; and

c)        ensure its compliance with that policy (including its equal employment opportunities programme) and report in its annual report (if any) on the extent of its compliance.

To add to this expectation, the Education Review Office includes it in their June 2017 Assurance Checklist for schools preparing for a visit.

So, what to do? An EEO policy is still a requirement to be a ‘good employer’. We can’t remove a legal requirement from the content without placing schools at risk.

We have removed the specific action of maintaining a database so given schools room for their own implementation and left the broad principles of an EEO policy. However, we have left the bullet regarding including a summary of the year’s compliance in the annual report. By adding a simple sentence or statement to the annual report, a school can report on its compliance with its EEO policy. 

Disaster, Death, Mayhem, Chaos, and Yoghurt

Disaster, Death, Mayhem, Chaos, and Yoghurt

There are many reasons why I lie awake night after night tense, vaguely afraid, pinned to the mattress by the heavy sense of impending doom. In my head, where there should be images of quiet rural scenes; palm fringed beaches with aqua wavelets gently lapping the shore; a picnic rug, a hamper of delicious morsels, and Johnny Depp;  there is a frantic motorway interchange of speeding thoughts recklessing tearing across the lanes, overtaking, screeching, nearly crashing, over and over again. They keep coming, relentlessly, and faster, and louder until I could stand up and scream (except for the being pinned down bit – and by doom that is, not Johnny Depp).

“WHAT CAN I DO? WHAT CAN I DO?” I would scream. “I’ve written them guides, I’ve reminded them in advisories, I’ve put it on Facebook, but I still don’t think every school that needs one has developed a Tsunami Evacuation plan!”

“What are they thinking? Don’t they realise that it will be too late once the klaxons are klaxing? All they need to do is look at the civil defence website and check out the evacuation areas. They can work with our guidelines and their local civil defence to create a plan. Just something that outlines where they will go and how. They just need to try it out and let the school community know about it so that parents won’t try to get to the school but to the assembly point or other designated place.  IT’S NOT HARD!”

“And what about lockdown? Surely they’ve all sorted their reverse evacuation plans? NO! NO! I DON’T THINK THEY HAVE! Don’t they care? What if there’s a tiger on the loose? What if there’s a guy with a gun? What if there’s a huge accident on the intersection outside school? What if there’s toxic dust swirling in the air from an overturned toxic dust tanker? What if a bunch of chimpanzees escape from the local zoo? What if a troupe of naked exotic dancers storms the playground? What if a dense cloud of mosquitoes big enough to block the sun is heading towards  the playground? What if there’s civil unrest and public violence? What if there’s an explosion near the front gate? ARE THEY SORTED? DO THEY KNOW HOW TO ALERT THE STUDENTS AND STAFF AND GET THEM INSIDE? DO THEY KNOW IF THEY CAN LEAVE THE SCHOOL SAFELY THROUGH THE BACK GATE? DO THEY KNOW HOW TO COMMUNICATE WITH EACH OTHER, THE POLICE, THE PARENTS?”

Then I feel sick. My head spins. I groan. No, really, I DO actually feel a bit sick. Just how far past the use by date can you eat yoghurt without it churning in your innards, running around, bubbling nastily and forcing its way out the nearest exit?

Sigh. Calm down. Happy place, happy place. Really schools have to take responsibility for their own emergency procedures – you can only do so much. Remind them again. Point them to the guidelines on the Demo site. Breath. Just breathe, get back to the palm fringed beach, the white sand, the rug, the picnic hamper - No, No Johnny! Put the spoon down! LOOK AT THE DATE! LOOK AT THE DATE! Hey, Johnny, the tide seems to have gone out a really long way – look! Why is the horizon coming towards us?

Help Megan sleep. Check out the guidelines on the Demo site for reverse evacuation and/or tsunami evacuation. Add reassuring comments here about your preparedness and/or experience with shortdated yoghurt.