What is asbestos abatement?
Asbestos abatement is the process of safely removing or containing asbestos-containing material (ACM) to minimize the risk of exposure to airborne asbestos fibers. This involves identifying, assessing, and appropriately managing asbestos hazards according to regulatory standards to protect human health and the environment.
Why is there abatement work at Alumni Gym?
On March 25, Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) was notified that materials had fallen through the drop-ceiling in room 118. The lab results indicated that the ceiling plaster was an ACM.
Dartmouth has hired Alloy Group, a licensed abatement contractor that frequently performs similar work on campus, to perform this work. Alloy’s trained workers use standard engineering controls such as negative pressure containments, HEPA-filtered vacuums, and HEPA-filtered exhaust units to ensure that the ACM is properly contained during the cleanup work and properly bagged for off-site disposal. This will include a complete cleanup and decontamination of surfaces where asbestos-containing dust or debris entered the office, as well as complete removal of the plaster from the ceiling.
Dartmouth has hired Woodard & Curran, an environmental consulting firm that frequently performs similar work on campus, to perform air quality monitoring throughout the abatement to ensure that the spaces outside the work area meet criteria for continued use during the work, and to perform final clearance inspections and air quality monitoring to ensure that the spaces included within the work area meet criteria for re-occupancy when abatement is complete.
Is it safe to be in the building while the abatement work is ongoing?
Yes. The negative pressure containments will prevent asbestos fibers from leaving the work area, and samples collected from air quality monitoring will be analyzed to confirm that EPA limits for air quality criteria are met in occupied spaces outside the work area.
Abatement workers inside the containment will wear personal protective equipment (PPE), including Tyvek suits and air-purifying respirators, to protect them from exposure to asbestos during the cleanup work. After each worker exits the containment at the end of their shift, they enter directly into a decontamination shower established behind the temporary wall to remove and bag their used PPE. Workers exiting the decontamination area are not transporting contaminated materials from the work area.
How long will the abatement take?
The abatement work is expected to last several weeks. Please visit this site for updates.
Why is there asbestos in the building?
Asbestos is a class of naturally occurring fibrous minerals that have been used historically to manufacture thousands of types of products, including standard construction materials and other products, for hundreds of years. Asbestos was used extensively in manufactured building materials in the 20th century for its strength, thermal insulating properties, fire resistance, and sound attenuation, among other factors.
Alumni Gym was built in 1909 and is known to contain asbestos in several types of building materials, which is typical for buildings of this era and style of construction. While most of the plaster in the building is not asbestos-containing, the plaster at this location was tested after last week’s event and confirmed to contain asbestos.
Nearly all buildings on campus, including Alumni Gym, have been surveyed by qualified inspectors to identify ACM. The past survey work has been performed as required by OSHA to determine the presence, location, and quantity of ACM before renovation work; and also for the development of Operations and Maintenance (O&M) Plans to identify ACM that may be encountered by facility personnel during the course of routine building operations or maintenance.
During a construction-related asbestos survey last summer, a number of plaster samples were taken in areas below the Zimmerman Fitness Center; those samples were negative. EHS and Woodard & Curran continue to assess areas within the gym, and have recently completed a visual survey and sampling above the drop-down ceiling on the first floor. All samples analyzed were reported with no asbestos detected.
Why didn’t Dartmouth remove the asbestos before this happened?
Asbestos is a respiratory hazard. While most ACM in the building are in good condition and do not pose a respiratory hazard because they are classified as “non-friable” (meaning that they cannot be crumbled, pulverized, or reduced to powder by hand pressure), materials such as plaster can become friable when damaged in a manner such as the ceiling plaster in the offices beneath the second-floor weightlifting area.
EPA recommends that “undamaged non-friable asbestos is best left undisturbed and managed in place. If done improperly, removing asbestos has the potential to create a greater health risk than leaving it undisturbed.”
Surveys performed for O&M Plan development identify the approximate quantity, location, and condition of existing ACM in a building. Materials in poor condition are identified for abatement, and intact materials in good condition are managed in place (i.e., not removed or abated unless scheduled as part of a renovation or routine O&M).
The condition of the ceiling plaster beneath the weightlifting area was unknown because of its concealed location above multiple layers of ceiling tiles; this isolated condition only became known when a ceiling tile was dislodged on March 25, 2024. Since this event, Dartmouth has taken immediate steps to address the issue.
I was in the building the week of March 28 after this event—was I exposed to asbestos?
Low concentrations of asbestos were detected in the ceiling plaster debris which, until the event, had remained above the suspended ceiling tiles. Dartmouth has no information to suggest that general users of the building were exposed to asbestos from this event.
Dartmouth Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) staff had samples from the supply side of the ventilation system within Alumni Gym tested on Friday, March 29, to confirm whether asbestos fibers were present in parts of the air circulation system. Those tests were negative, meaning that the presence of the asbestos is contained to those offices and does not pose an immediate risk to the safety or integrity of other parts of the building.
Will it be okay to enter the building after abatement?
Yes. Woodard & Curran will perform air quality monitoring throughout the abatement and perform final clearance inspections and air quality monitoring to ensure that the spaces meet the criteria for re-occupancy when the abatement is complete. Additional testing is also being conducted to monitor air quality at other locations in the building.
Is there asbestos in the air?
Woodard & Curran had air samples taken from Room 118 on Monday, March 29 , to confirm whether asbestos fibers were present in the air. Those tests were negative, and no structures were detected.
Why have the weights in Zimmerman Fitness Center been closed off?
The plaster in the ceiling was dislodged by vibrations from the weight lifting equipment on the second floor. The weights have been closed off temporarily while the abatement is underway. Dartmouth has engaged a structural engineer to complete an assessment to determine if any changes need to be made to the existing equipment and use to ensure there are no ongoing issues. As we proceed, we will update the community regarding the timeline for restoring access to the weight racks. Please check this site for information.
How does Dartmouth manage asbestos on campus?
EHS works with pre-approved and vetted asbestos abatement contractors, and accredited and trained third-party monitoring consultants, for clearance and air quality assurance testing. EHS works closely with project managers, FO&M, and outside consultants in conducting asbestos hazardous building surveys prior to maintenance, renovation, or demolition. Dartmouth is actively managing asbestos on campus.
Whom do I contact if I have more questions?
You can contact Dartmouth Environmental Health and Safety by phone at (603) 646-1762 or by email at ehs@dartmouth.edu. Ongoing information about the abatement will be posted on sites.dartmouth.edu/gymabatement.
Where can I find more information about asbestos and asbestos abatement?
Additional resources can be found at:
United States Environmental Protection Agency: Learn about Asbestos
New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services: Asbestos FAQ
U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration: Asbestos FAQ