Asbestos Risk on Chicago Public Schools
Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral substance and has been proven to pose risk on an individual's health. This is the deadly exposure risk that hundreds of students and teachers in nearly 200 Chicago public schools face.
The study conducted and presented by EWG Action Funds shows that Chicago Public Schools Officials in 2013 hired inspectors who informed them about the asbestos problems in the schools. According to the report of 2015 CPS asbestos surveillance update, of the 184 elementary, middle school, and high schools identified to have a possible exposure risk, only about 11 of them had complied with the recommendation.
The report also shows that some schools still had damaged asbestos-containing pipe insulation. It said these pipe insulation that contains asbestos "appears to be separating at some places". It also mentioned in the surveillance report that there were plasters that was "falling behind door storage left."
Asbestos were seen in Hallways, Classrooms, and Teachers' Lounges, this is according to the 2013 inspection. It also identified about 1,174 locations containing asbestos products all throughout the public schools of Chicago.
The following are the common at-risk areas that are accessible to students, staff, and teachers:
Classroom
Teachers' Lounge
Auditoriums
Restrooms
School Corridors
Storage Rooms
Boiler Rooms
Of those locations, more than half contains asbestos that are friable or crumbly. They were also either damaged or has a high potential to become damaged in the future, and this increases the risk for hazardous exposures.
According to the EWG Action Fund report, “Friable asbestos fibers can quickly become airborne from a touch of the hands or feet, not to mention the wear and tear resulting from students running, jumping, throwing balls or dropping heavy objects”.
Some of the schools included in the report are Northwest Middle School, Helen M. Hefferan Elementary School, Lincoln Park High School, among others. Inspectors who conducted the surveillance at theses schools identified the materials that contain asbestos in classroom floor tiles and insulation's. They considered these materials as "damaged or significantly damaged".
The Chicago Public Schools failed to follow its contracted inspectors' recommendations. They also violated the asbestos policy described in the Facility Performance Standards of their district. One of the minimum standards for managing hazards of asbestos is to “repair, fully encapsulate, or abate all friable asbestos-containing materials, including removal of asbestos-containing floor tiles, in areas occupied by students and staff", this is according to the 2012 district document.
ADX Asbestos Removal, 125 S Clark St. Chicago IL 60603, 773-345-7074
Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral substance and has been proven to pose risk on an individual's health. This is the deadly exposure risk that hundreds of students and teachers in nearly 200 Chicago public schools face.
The study conducted and presented by EWG Action Funds shows that Chicago Public Schools Officials in 2013 hired inspectors who informed them about the asbestos problems in the schools. According to the report of 2015 CPS asbestos surveillance update, of the 184 elementary, middle school, and high schools identified to have a possible exposure risk, only about 11 of them had complied with the recommendation.
The report also shows that some schools still had damaged asbestos-containing pipe insulation. It said these pipe insulation that contains asbestos "appears to be separating at some places". It also mentioned in the surveillance report that there were plasters that was "falling behind door storage left."
Asbestos were seen in Hallways, Classrooms, and Teachers' Lounges, this is according to the 2013 inspection. It also identified about 1,174 locations containing asbestos products all throughout the public schools of Chicago.
The following are the common at-risk areas that are accessible to students, staff, and teachers:
Classroom
Teachers' Lounge
Auditoriums
Restrooms
School Corridors
Storage Rooms
Boiler Rooms
Of those locations, more than half contains asbestos that are friable or crumbly. They were also either damaged or has a high potential to become damaged in the future, and this increases the risk for hazardous exposures.
According to the EWG Action Fund report, “Friable asbestos fibers can quickly become airborne from a touch of the hands or feet, not to mention the wear and tear resulting from students running, jumping, throwing balls or dropping heavy objects”.
Some of the schools included in the report are Northwest Middle School, Helen M. Hefferan Elementary School, Lincoln Park High School, among others. Inspectors who conducted the surveillance at theses schools identified the materials that contain asbestos in classroom floor tiles and insulation's. They considered these materials as "damaged or significantly damaged".
The Chicago Public Schools failed to follow its contracted inspectors' recommendations. They also violated the asbestos policy described in the Facility Performance Standards of their district. One of the minimum standards for managing hazards of asbestos is to “repair, fully encapsulate, or abate all friable asbestos-containing materials, including removal of asbestos-containing floor tiles, in areas occupied by students and staff", this is according to the 2012 district document.
ADX Asbestos Removal, 125 S Clark St. Chicago IL 60603, 773-345-7074
