Guam’s Attorney General Alicia Limtiaco says her worries over asbestos in Guam’s public schools are continuing to grow. She held a press conference yesterday in which she outlined her concerns about the three dozen schools where asbestos is known to exist.
Limtiaco says the the Guam Public School System Health and Safety Task Force recommends an updated report on in-school asbestos, especially given the fact that the current report on file is about 12 years old. That report says 36 public schools in Guam contain asbestos floor tiles.
According to an article in Pacific Sunday News, current worries center on Maria A. Ulloa Elementary School, where officials have closed at least one room due to the presence of asbestos.
Peter Cruz, Guam Environmental Protection Agency air program manager, who joined officials from the Guam Fire Department and the Department of Public Health for the media briefing, said the asbestos tiles have “a very low potential for harm.”
“We took a look at the tile [in Ulloa], and they were installed in 1965,” Cruz said. “They are still in very good condition. When we did the inspections with the industrial hygienist, we felt that it didn’t pose any threat to the kids.”
However, when tiles get broken or brittle, they can release asbestos fibers which, when inhaled, can eventually cause asbestos-related diseases such as asbestosis and mesothelioma.
The old report on file, notes Limtiaco, may no longer be accurate. “Basically we need to have an up-to-date progress report of the schools that have been addressed,” she said, “and where they are at this point in time.”
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