Additional Asbestos Cleanup at Palmyra, NJ School Pushes Abatement Costs Over $1 Million

School building in Palmyra, NJ is contaminated with asbestos-containing plaster. District orders temporary asbestos encapsulation measures and plans to open school to kindergarten-6 student population, teachers and staff in September.  Complete the form on this page for a free evaluation of your case by our mesothelioma lawyers.

In August 2009, the Palmyra, NJ School District, like virtually every public school district in the nation, was completing renovations scheduled to take place over the district’s summer vacation. However, renovations at a Palmyra elementary school hit an expensive road block when it was discovered that a section of the building with walls covered with asbestos-contaminated plaster had not been included in the District’s asbestos abatement bid. The asbestos products were found in classrooms, offices and hallways in the 60+-year old school building.

When the asbestos was discovered, the District Superintendent assured the community that since the work was taking place while the school was closed, no students, faculty or staff were in the building at the time. However, the workers performing renovation work were exposed to the dangerous carcinogen (cancer causing substance), which is well-known to cause serious illnesses such as mesothelioma cancer, asbestos-related lung cancer and asbestosis.

The Superintendent also shared the district’s preliminary asbestos abatement plan, which was to encapsulate the dangerous carcinogen with a paint and put procedural plans in place in the event the district would need to drill into the walls.

Higher Asbestos Abatement Costs
The Superintendent stated the asbestos abatement project did not include the area of the building where the contaminated plaster was located, and that it had been accidentally excluded when the project went out for bid.

The district had already earmarked over $421,000 for asbestos abatement at the school; however, removing the asbestos-containing plaster is estimated to cost between $800,000 and $1 million. The district is currently looking at options to fund the additional abatement costs.

Asbestos Reporting Requirements for Schools
The Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA) requires all school properties to be inspected every three years for the presence of asbestos-containing building materials. Districts are also required to:

• Maintain asbestos management plans to prevent and reduce the possibility of asbestos hazards;
• Notify all district faculty, staff and parent organizations of the availability of the management plans on a yearly basis;
• Perform periodic inspections of areas where ASM is known or suspected to be present;
• Ensure that only accredited asbestos companies are hired to perform all inspections and asbestos abatement projects; and
• That all district custodial staff are provided with asbestos awareness training.

Those At Risk
In addition to the workers who performed the renovation projects being at risk to develop asbestos disease, teachers, staff members and the students attending the school are also at risk.

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) statistics show that after construction-related occupations, school teachers have the highest risk of developing an asbestos-related disease. Many elementary school teachers spend the majority of their professional careers working for a single school district (sometimes teaching in the same school building, floor and even the same classroom for decades), causing them to suffer second-hand exposure to asbestos used to insulate heating pipes and other areas in older school buildings.

A number of mesothelioma patients develop the disease after limited or even a single exposure in their youth. Because of the long latency period (the time between exposure and when symptoms of illness first appear) is decades long, it is possible that students attending the school could develop an asbestos disease 30 or more years later.

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