Six pitfalls to avoid to reduce costs and liabilities.

Although the concern over the threat posed by asbestos found in public schools and buildings has subsided, renewed growth in the commercial real estate market over the past few years has switched the focus of asbestos abatement from the town hall to the board room. Across the country, building owners looking to sell, and potential owners looking to buy, plus their renovation contractors, are confronted with the daunting task of asbestos remediation and the decisions and cost ramifications it entails.

To help owners and contractors reduce both the cost and time it takes to safely and successfully complete an asbestos abatement project, William S. Kerbel, CIH, senior vice president of Atlantic Environmental Incorporated of Dover, NJ, has identified six pitfalls for all members of the building team to avoid.

Atlantic Environmental has provided asbestos abatement services ranging from identification and evaluation to designing the remedial action plans and supervising their implementation on a host of prominent buildings. A few of the major buildings on which it has provided asbestos abatement services include Bronx Lebanon Hospital, the former Gulf & Western Building at 15 Columbus Circle, the Juilliard School of Music at Lincoln Center, Two Penn Plaza and the Brooklyn Museum in Brooklyn.

Don't Underestimate the Job

"The biggest mistake owners make when undertaking asbestos abatement," says Kerbel, "is in considering the clean-up process as just a small, easily-handled portion of a construction project." By minimizing the importance of the asbestos removal and relegating it to the status of just another part of the construction, owners and/or contractors are setting themselves up for some real headaches in the future, according to Kerbel.

"Owners and their building team need to realize that the planning for asbestos remediation is just as important as the actual construction design," says Kerbel. He contends that because construction is not permitted in an area undergoing asbestos abatement, owners must consider the abatement as a separate entity, which must be woven into the actual construction schedule. Scheduling of the abatement directly impinges upon the overall construction scheduling, and a plan should be developed wherein construction can continue in one area of the building while asbestos abatement is performed in another.

Allow Realistic Remedial Time

The amount of time it will realistically take to correct an asbestos problem (especially in a high-rise building) is another factor that is frequently misjudged, according to Kerbel. "Many owners believe that an asbestos problem can be solved in a week or two," he said, "while in actuality, an asbestos removal project performed diligently and with the proper considerations and procedures can take months." As a result, owners who fail to appreciate this fact find themselves spending significantly more than they had budgeted.

Work With Qualified Professionals

Kerbel believes that because of this lack of comprehensive knowledge, it is in an owner's own interest to bring in a qualified consultant before cost-estimating and scheduling begin. "A qualified consultant can assess an owner's problem and develop a remedial action plan to meet all local, state and federal regulations, as well as help the owner to integrate this plan into his actual construction project in a way that will ultimately save the owner time and money," he said. The more carefully planned and executed an abatement project is, the more cost-effective and less exasperating that project will be for the owner, the consultant contends.

Think Twice About Containment as an Alternative to Removal

Another mistake owners sometimes make is in believing that containment, rather than removal of asbestos-containing materials, will be less expensive and quicker. "Although it may be quicker," says Kerbel, "the fact is those materials are still there. As a result, every time construction work is undertaken in the future, the same liabilities exist and the same precautions and procedures that were involved in the original project must be followed. The owners eventually wind up spending as much as they would have for complete removal... if not more."

That Low Price May be the Costliest

Kerbel also feels that if owners were more aware of their liabilities, they would be less likely to enter into contracts based solely on price and completion date. According to him, many owners are not aware that if an inspector or official finds on-site violations, it's not only the contractor who is fined, but the owner as well.

When an owner contracts on price and completion date, there is no guarantee that the firm hired will be as conscientious and responsible as it should be, according to Kerbel. He added, "When the average fine for a violation in New York City is $10,000, an owner should be sure he's dealing with a firm that will ensure things are done by the book, and not just for expediency."

Make Sure You Know Where the Contaminated Material is Going

Disposal of the removed asbestos is another instance where an unconscientious asbestos removal contractor can hurt owners, says Kerbel. He cites an owner's "cradle-to-grave" liability for materials containing asbestos, which means that once those materials have been bagged and taken to an appropriate disposal site, the owner retains the responsibility for those bags. Should something go wrong with the bags, be it a year, 10 years or 40 years from the time they were deposited on-site, it is up to the owner to rectify the problem and take care of that.

"Some contractors have been known to dispose of the material at up to ten different sites," said Kerbel, "thereby increasing an owner's liability ten-fold." He contends that the cost of remediation for such a problem can be staggering, but to potentially multiply that cost by 10 is totally unacceptable.

Although these are only some of the pitfalls owners encounter when faced with the prospect of asbestos abatement, Kerbel reiterated that these are the most common examples. "Hopefully," he said, "they will be enough to demonstrate to owners the intricacies of asbestos abatement and the fact that it is not 'just another aspect of a construction project,' but a serious and complicated component which requires the expertise of a reputable and thoroughly professional environmental firm."