If you own an older home or commercial property and are considering renovating the site, pause before searching for a contractor. Often when construction projects begin it’s not known how much toxic materials were used in original construction or where it’s located on site. Before embarking on a construction project, the property owner and contractor should mark potential locations of possible asbestos contamination. If a demolition begins and suspected asbestos fibers are found, all work should stop immediately. Only trained contractors who specialize in asbestos removal should be entrusted with eliminating the substance.

They wear protective gear and dispose of the substance properly. Windsor’s R.C. White Ltd. is one of those firms. The company has years of experience and can easily make your home or business safer.

If a construction firm continues its work without taking the proper precautions, it is putting the lives of its workers at risk. The Ontario Ministry of Labour recently fined a company $50,000 because five of its workers didn’t use protective gear when disposing of asbestos, reported the Environmental Advisory Committees of Ontario in its newsletter.

Improper asbestos abatement can also spread the material to other parts of the structure unaffected by asbestos. If removal is not done according to standards, asbestos can spread through the ventilation system to other parts of the building and the contamination can cause a much larger clean-up bill than anticipated.

Asbestos is one of 11 materials the Ontario government has deemed too dangerous to be used in construction materials. Asbestos has a long history working well as a fire retardant and insulator. After it was used extensively in construction materials from 1930 to 1950, it was banned from use in Canada in 1977 when it was linked to several cancers including lung cancer.

If you want asbestos abatement done properly contact trained professionals like R.C. White Ltd.

RC White Ltd. is a member of EACO – the Environmental Abatement Council of Ontario.