Rick Kornak provides sharp news and interesting articles for the Mesothelioma Cancer Alliance. Bio.

June 20, 2014

Portland, Oregon - students of Duniway School Southeast of Portland may have been exposed to Asbestos during the partial demolition of a neighboring House. Now, inhabitants of the region have expressed the desire for the city to take measures to give priority to the asbestos regulations.

"The problem is really at the level of the city," said Neighborhood Association Eastmoreland President Robert McCullough, whose goal is to convince the Advisory Committee's review of development of the need for a revision. "The city has lost interest in these issues of workings."

Currently, Portland doesn't require manufacturers to prove that asbestos has been contained or removed before the issuance of a permit, it is necessary for manufacturers to notify neighbors of demolition or imminent renovation projects. In addition, a demolition permit is not necessary unless the current structure is completely demolished, including its foundation. Since the residence on the rue de S. E. Rex has been partially dismantled, no permit was required.

This is an example of what the Eastmoreland Neighborhood Association considers a defective system.

The city of Portland does not regulate the handling of asbestos; This task is for the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality. Because two separate entities are responsible for, all violations are often unknown until after that exposure has already occurred, as was the case with the House near Duniway school. Any renovation or demolition project is supposed to be inspected by the Department of Environmental Quality, before the start of the project. No such inspection was made the E Rex Street home.

"The system as it is does not work," said the Member of the Neighborhood Association Eastmoreland Kimberley Koehler. "We do the work of the city."

Asbestos exposure is the main cause of mesothelioma - a type of lung cancer that is almost always fatal. Although asbestos was banned in the 1970s, many old houses, such as the one located on the street S. E. Rex, contain the hazardous substance.

Flawed Licensing System may have led to asbestos exposure, Say Portlanders of southeastern