Asbestos World Watch

In South Africa, asbestos pipes and other rusting plumbing refuse were discovered in a stream near the Myburgh’s Waterfall Ravine in Table Mountain National Park. The discarded piping was found by a local Hout Bay resident, Jonny Cohen, on a hike through the park. Cohen also found a weir constructed across the stream. Pipes from the weir led to a dam in the privately owned Ken Heights.

Rangers in charge of that area of the park had no knowledge of the asbestos dumping, the weir, or the water being piped to Ken Heights. An investigation is underway to determine if Ken Heights has the right to pipe the water to their dam. SANPark has already found out that the asbestos refuse was left over from a remodeling of the weir, and the Ken Heights estate has been asked to have the asbestos properly disposed of. An estate member replied once she was notified of the asbestos that it would be removed.

The paperwork required to notify Table Mountain Park of the weir rebuilding was never filed, according to SANPark. Another issue to be determined is whether or not the estate of Ken Heights had water rights to pipe it in from the national park. A member of the estate claimed that Ken Heights was granted water access more than 50 years in the past, but the Department of Water Affairs shows no such record. Further investigation will require perusing the estate’s deeds which are inaccessible at this time.

In Toronto, Canada, removal of asbestos which had contaminated a neighborhood after a recent explosion at Sunrise Propane, has been completed. The city of Toronto agreed to take charge of the cleanup and disposal of the asbestos in the area after Sunrise Propane neglected to act, but what was not anticipated was the $1.5 million (CAD) price tag. Now the city hopes to be repaid by Sunrise Propane for the asbestos removal since the company should have taken responsibility for the cleanup efforts in the first place.

In Australia, a dispute between James Hardie and the Tax Office could result in those who develop asbestos-related diseases going without compensation. Currently, James Hardie is making contributions to its asbestos compensation fund, which has two to three years’ worth of payments in reserve, but in a tax case, the Tax Office is seeking to reduce the amount James Hardie can contribute to the fund in the future. The case is currently pending in Australia.

Sources:

“Asbestos Cleanup Nears End”, The ( Toronto ) Star , 21 August 2008

“Asbestos Fund Threatened by Tax Case: James Hardie”, ABC News ( Australia ), 20 August 2008

“Reserve in Dispute about Mountain Water Usage”, ( South Africa ) Cape Times , 22 August 2008

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