Asbestos Contamination Reports

Loose fill asbestos insulation (Mr Fluffy) is a dangerous substance that poses an exposure risk to homeowners, residents, tradespeople, service providers and visitors. The first advice remains that homeowners and tenants should not reside in affected properties.

By residing in, or allowing others to reside in, an affected property the homeowner is accepting the risk and responsibility for minimising exposure to anyone entering the property.

Under the Dangerous Substances (General) Regulation 2004 homeowners that choose to remain in an affected property (including those who have taken up the extended settlement option in the ACT Government’s Buyback Program) or allow others to reside in the property, are required to have an Asbestos Contamination Report (ACR) prepared and lodged with WorkSafe ACT.

The ACR must be prepared by a licensed asbestos assessor, and include:

  • a report identifying the location, type and condition of asbestos contamination in the home and any opening or crack through which asbestos contamination could enter the living areas;
  • an assessment of the risk associated with the contamination or potential for contamination;
  • a contamination management plan that advises how the contamination should be managed through actions such as cleaning, sealing, locking and labelling (also known as an Asbestos Management Plan or AMP).

A licensed asbestos removalist must undertake any mandatory management actions specified in the AMP within six months of the assessment and submit certification of the completion of works to WorkSafe ACT, the owner and occupier.

Additional ACR requirements come into effect on 1 July 2020. Existing ACR's will continue to be current for 24 months from the date of the assessment report. From 1 July 2020 the validity period for a new ACR will be set between 6 and 24 months as determined by the licensed asbestos assessor.

A new ACR must be prepared for each property every two years, or immediately after any building work or structural damage that may have disturbed the asbestos contamination in the roof space, wall cavity or sub-floor area.

Your obligations as a homeowner

The owner of a property affected by loose fill asbestos insulation must:

  • arrange for a licensed asbestos assessor to inspect the affected property, prepare an ACR and submit it to WorkSafe;
  • arrange for a licensed asbestos removalist to complete any cleaning, sealing, locking and labelling works identified in the AMP within six months of the assessment;
  • comply with any other contamination management requirement identified in the AMP;
  • arrange for a new ACR to be prepared before the expiry date of the existing ACR or immediately after any building work or structural damage that may have disturbed the asbestos contamination in the roof space, wall cavity or sub-floor area;
  • advise WorkSafe ACT at least five business days before any planned building or maintenance work begins that may disturb contamination in the roof space, wall cavity or sub-floor area;
  • provide a copy of the ACR to any occupier of the premises.

It is the homeowners’ responsibility to pay for the preparation of the ACR and the implementation of any recommended actions. Costs will vary from property to property.

The ACR must be displayed in an approved display case in a visible location at the affected property. The ACT Government will provide these cases. You can contact the Loose Fill Asbestos Coordination team for more information.

Changes to the Dangerous Substances Act 2004 (the Act) also require that the status of each property is published on the Affected Residential Premises Register (the Register). This will include information about whether a property requires an ACR or whether it has a current ACR in place with the required contamination management works completed.

Publishing the ACR status of remaining affected properties on the Register provides the community with easy access to information about asbestos contamination, so each person may ascertain the risk involved and make an informed decision about any activity they undertake at affected premises. This is particularly pertinent for tradespeople and care workers as it allows them to easily understand the risk associated with the work they are being asked to undertake at an affected property.

The Register can be accessed at the Loose Fill Asbestos Coordination team website at https://www.loosefillasbestos.act.gov.au/affected-properties/register.

Homeowners also have an obligation to ensure that a safety tag is displayed at the electricity meter box and switchboard for the home, that the sticker is not removed or damaged and that the sticker is replaced if it is removed or damaged.

Occupiers have an obligation to ensure that the display case containing the ACR is not removed or damaged, and that the ACR is inside the box.

Your obligations as an occupier

The occupier of an affected property must:

  • tell any person entering the house that it is affected by loose fill asbestos insulation. This includes, but is not limited to, tradespeople, service providers such as health care workers or general visitors;
  • make a copy of the ACR available to that person;
  • ensure that any works undertaken by a licensed asbestos removalist to clean, seal, lock and/or label are not tampered with or removed.

Occupiers have an obligation to ensure that the safety tag displayed at the electricity meter box and switchboard of the home is not removed or damaged, and that the sticker is replaced if it removed or damaged.

Your obligations as a licenced asbestos assessor or removalist

A licensed asbestos assessor who prepares an ACR for an affected home must provide a copy of the completed Asbestos Contamination Report Form to WorkSafe ACT and to the homeowner.

A licensed asbestos removalist must certify that each mandatory management action they carry out has been completed by signing off against the action in the Contamination Management Plan section of the Asbestos Contamination Report Form. The signed form must be submitted to WorkSafe ACT, the homeowner and the occupier.

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