Dealing with asbestos in Tasmania

A report on dealing with asbestos in Tasmania is hailed by Workplace Relations Minister Lisa Singh as offering “a wonderful framework to help shape government policy”.

Singh paid tribute to the work of the steering committee in coming up with a series of recommendations for the government to consider in its ‘Improving Asbestos Management in Tasmania’ report.

“Asbestos-related diseases are a scourge in our community that will have an impact on people’s health for decades to come,” Singh said. “Last March, I asked Workplace Standards to run a forum on asbestos in Tasmania to help understand community concerns and the extent of the problem.

“That convinced me that we needed to act and, as a result, I commissioned this report. It offers us a way forward and the government will respond to it as quickly as possible. I recognise the urgency in dealing with this and our response time will reflect that. We must ensure we put in place measures that will make a lasting difference.”

Singh said the key recommendations in the report are:

• A dedicated Asbestos Unit to be set up within Workplace Standards to drive overall government policy including areas such as long-term removal, training and licensing;
• Specialist asbestos inspectors for each region of the state;
• Mandatory building inspections prior to demolition permits being issued;
• Asbestos be listed as an essential safety requirement for Building Maintenance Certificates;
• Increased penalties for incorrect removal and disposal of asbestos; and
• Legislation to make it compulsory to disclose the presence of asbestos in residential rental properties, including financial incentives for landlords to remove asbestos.