The island of Tasmania, off the southeastern coast of Australia, has recently been dealing with the large toll asbestos has taken on the community, which was heavily involved in the asbestos industry for many years. Now, the country is making an effort to correct the asbestos problems.
Asbestos Awareness Campaign
One such effort is the formation of Asbestos Free Tasmania, which seeks to raise awareness of effects of the deadly mineral, according to the Australia Broadcasting Company. Asbestos Free Tasmania is currently urging Paperlinx, a paper mill, to do a thorough job cleaning up asbestos when they leave their location later this year.
“I’m hoping that Paperlinx do the right thing by the people of the north-west coast by removing the asbestos from its buildings under its remediation work,” the organization’s acting chief executive, Lisa Singh, told the news source.
The asbestos awareness organization is concerned that the paper mill located in Burnie will become another derelict building rife with asbestos, like the old Devenport maternity hospital.
“We don’t want to see over time another situation like the Devonport maternity hospital where it gets [vandalized] and trampled through and asbestos being in the danger of people,” she said.
Asbestos exposure is a serious concern, as inhalation of the deadly mineral can cause malignant mesothelioma and asbestosis.
