Newport News, Virginia - The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality is investigating reports of a subcontractor or contractor who may have illegally dumped asbestos-contaminated construction debris at a Suffolk landfill.

The construction project in question is a new $14 million Navy housing project in downtown Newport News.

John Holland, owner of the Suffolk landfill known as John C. Holland Enterprises Inc., said that earlier this week, debris from the Navy construction site was quarantined and was undergoing testing for asbestos.

The state allows the Holland landfill to accept and dispose of non-friable asbestos materials. These are materials that are largely intact, with asbestos fibers still contained within the matrix of the material.

Friable asbestos is generally considered to be much more dangerous, as the material is deteriorating, can be crumbled easily, and can allow fibers to become airborne.

Asbestos was heavily used in construction materials between the 1940s and 1980s, due to its light-weight, durable, and fire resistant nature. However, airborne asbestos fibers are highly dangerous. Inhalation of the fibers can cause serious lung diseases, including a type of asbestos cancer called mesothelioma.

Due to the dangers of asbestos, any construction materials that contain the substance must be removed and disposed of carefully during renovation and demolition work. The asbestos materials must be removed via a process called wet-removal, in which the materials are wetted to reduce the dispersal of dust. In addition the materials must be sealed and wetted before disposal at a landfill that is licensed to deal with asbestos waste. Failure to comply with these regulations can result in heavy fines and in some cases, a prison sentence.

Holland said he can not say whether the material that was disposed of at his landfill contains asbestos or is harmless. “There is a possibility [it contains asbestos]. It’s quarantined. For right now it’s not going anywhere.”

State officials confirmed that John Holland had contacted the Virginia Beach office of the DEQ to inform the office of his suspicions about the potentially contaminated material. The DEQ then sent an inspector to the landfill to collect samples and quarantine the remaining materials.

A sample that had previously been taken from siding at the construction site was tested by an environmental laboratory and was found to contain 15% asbestos.

Of the material at the landfill, Bill Hayden, a DEQ spokesman, said “We are waiting for a copy of the lab results.” Holland says the test results are expected to be available some time next week.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 27th, 2008 at 5:22 pm and is filed under Asbestos Exposure, Asbestos Litigation, Virginia. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS feed. Responses are currently closed, but you trackback from your own site.