Case Study Asbestos - Nauru

Abstract

Nauru’s Department of Environment Management and Agriculture determined the removal of existing asbestos containing materials at the Nauru landfill would be the most useful activity, as this would manage a current health risk to workers and provide an opportunity for government to confirm the real cost of management of asbestos containing materials through packaging and transporting to New Zealand for landfilling. The asbestos containing materials were stored in degraded shipping containers near the main access to the landfill. Tasks implemented were (1) emptying the existing five containers of the asbestos containing materials, (2) repackaging the materials to international standards into new containers, (3) performing biohazard controls compliant with shipping internationally, (4) fully cleaning / remediating the storage containers so no residual asbestos fibres remained, (5) shipping the asbestos containing materials to New Zealand for disposal, (6) ensuring controlled landfilling of the transported materials. Numerous difficulties were experienced during the contract, but these were all overcome with cooperation, a creative approach to the work, a good understanding of the issues, and considerable perseverance.