January 7th, 2005

A notice of violation has been issued to a waste authority facility regarding possible asbestos violations at a Delaware landfill. The notice of violation was issued by state regulators, and was for the improper acceptance of asbestos containing material at the Delaware Sold Waste Authority facility, Jones crossroads.

Although the notice of violation is a warning only, carrying no fine or penalty, landfill officials have been quick to defend themselves. The chief operating officer of the Delaware Solid Waste Authority, Pat Canzano, stated that investigations are being carried out to see whether such materials had been accepted to the landfill. He also added: “The material, as it was presented to us, was construction and demolition waste. We do inspections on the material that comes in, but we can’t possibly inspect every single load of material. It’s a random screening process.”

An environmental engineer with the Solid and Hazardous Waste Division at DNREC (Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control), Robert Hartman, says that no risk is posed by asbestos materials being contained in the landfill anyway. He stated to one newspaper: “The landfill is constructed adequately to contain a load of asbestos. The more you disturb it, the more chance it can get into the air.” The landfill has been advised to leave any asbestos waste found at the landfill undisturbed for now.

The concerns over asbestos products are rife because this substance is the known cause of health problems including mesothelioma, a deadly and incurable form of cancer. Asbestos fibers in the air can result in the breathing in and ingestion of the asbestos, which is what leads to these problems.