Future problems to be anticipated: demolition, repair, and disposal

Our plain-English summary of Future problems to be anticipated: demolition, repair, and disposal, by R.S. Prust (Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1979).

The study

• Author: R.S. Prust
• Journal: Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
• Published: 1979;330:545-7
• Cited by: 1 article, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher
• In J-M's library: Johns-Manville's company medical library held a copy (J-M no. 004378).

In plain English

This panel presentation, not a research study, came from an author at Johns-Manville Sales Corporation. It reported no new data. The author described how sprayed-on mineral fiber coatings came into use to fireproof steel in high-rise buildings after World War II, and later spread to decorative and acoustic ceilings. The author stated that such ceilings usually contain 1 to 30% asbestos fiber, averaging about 7%, and cited an estimate that 10% of New Jersey schools have sprayed-on asbestos ceilings. In the author's view, asbestos in floor tile, roofing and asbestos cement is locked in, and following EPA rules on demolition and disposal avoids any health hazard. The author quoted Dr. Paul Kotin, a Johns-Manville executive, as saying there is no evidence of excess disease from exposure that is neither occupational nor para-occupational. For ceilings, the author listed three options: removal, sealing, or leaving them in place with occasional monitoring. The author warned that the risks of removal can far exceed the benefits without safeguards. The author concluded that under normal circumstances these ceilings need present no health hazard.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: Panel presentation / opinion paper; no original study or data
• Who was studied: No people were studied. The paper discusses buildings in general, mainly high-rise buildings built in the 25 years after World War II, including office buildings, apartments, condominiums and schools.
• Exposure: Asbestos-containing building materials: sprayed-on texturized ceiling materials, coatings for structural beams, and pipe and boiler insulation, with attention to demolition, repair and disposal. No fiber type is named.
• Main results:
  • The author stated that sprayed-on ceilings usually contain 1 to 30% asbestos fiber, with an average of about 7%. No source or measurements were given.
  • The author reported an estimate, with no source given, that 10% of schools in New Jersey contain sprayed-on asbestos ceilings.
  • The author's view was that in floor tile, roofing and asbestos cement sheets the asbestos is locked in. Among these other products, only pipe and boiler insulation was treated as a possible problem.
  • The author's view was that following EPA regulations on demolition and disposal will avoid any health hazard.
  • The author quoted Dr. Paul Kotin of Johns-Manville as stating there is no evidence of excess disease from non-occupational and non-para-occupational exposure. No evidence was presented in the paper.
  • The author described three options for asbestos-containing ceilings: removal, applying a sealant or coating, or leaving the ceiling as is with occasional monitoring.
  • The author warned that the risks of removing a ceiling can far exceed the benefits if the specified safeguards are not followed.
• The authors' conclusion: The author concluded that, under normal circumstances, asbestos-containing ceilings need present no health hazard, and that any action should be decided case by case. The author also stated that asbestos-containing products have been used safely and will continue to be used.

Related studies

• Occupational exposure in the removal and disposal of asbestos-containing materials in Italy — A. Scarselli, M. Corfiati, et al. (2016)
• Investigative studies for the use of an inactive asbestos mine as a disposal site for asbestos wastes — E. Gidarakos, K. Anastasiadou, et al. (2008)
• Pleading for the use of biodegradable polymers in favor of marine environments and to avoid an asbestos-like problem for the future — M. Kubota, K. Takayama, et al. (2005)
• Asbestos in public water supplies: discussion of future problems — J.P. Hills (1979)
• Leaching behaviour of hazardous demolition waste — N. Roussat, J. Méhu, et al. (2008)
• Construction and demolition waste management: China's lessons — H. Duan, J. Li (2016)

Browse more research in Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, or return to medical research.