A law enacted in April of last year Spain established In a year all town halls should have been created building count with asbestos. The law is widely violated. The regulation also requires reporting of a planning calendar. gradual removal of asbestos roofing. Any construction before 2002 can have asbestos. It was the year that the production, use and sale of asbestos was completely banned. Both the census and the calendar, which should be available to the public, must have been sent to the competent health, environmental and labor authorities of the autonomous communities, who, in turn, should inspect and verify that the resulting debris has been removed, and an authorized administrator.
But the law is still a dead letter. It is estimated to still exist in Catalonia. more than four million tonsAccording to various estimates, its withdrawal will cost more than 100 million euros in investments in Catalonia alone. By 2030, more than 85% of these illegal construction materials will have exceeded their useful life and will pose a public, occupational and environmental health problem as they are highly carcinogenic. The Generalitat Government has approved the 2021-2023 regulatory plan and the 2021-2026 Catalan Occupational Safety and Health Strategy. The goal is to remove asbestos from all areas. Public buildings Unity as a whole before 2028 and in 2032.
Economic consequences and fines
The use of satellites has become an effective tool for mapping uralita of municipalities that are required by law and have an incomplete municipal inventory. telespazio Iberica, The Italian multinational company specializing in processing data collected by satellites warns that removing uralite from all roofs will cost millions and is promoting remote sensing services that it guarantees can speed up the process and make it cheaper. There are no reliable studies that show asbestos remains on roofs, which is much more important in rural areas in Spain. Sources from the construction industry calculate the removal of a uralite roof from the ground. about 50 square meters can cost between 1,000 and 2,500 euros, according to the regions and features of each structure. A minimum of 900 euros must be added to this amount for the transport of waste. Up to a minimum of 3,500 euros, an important figure for family economies when it comes to detached houses. A simple roof can cost around 70 euros per square metre, which will be added after the uralite roof is removed. For example, replacing the 2,000 square meter roof of a school in Madrid (Colegio de Educación Infantil y Primaria (CEIP) Meseta de Orcasitas) cost the City Council more than €435,000, €217 per square metre. parliamentary response.
Telespazio company uses artificial intelligence to detect uralite roofs with photos from space
The technology Telespazio uses is based on the analysis of photographs taken from space. The best images provide resolutions of up to 30 centimeters in superimposed layers (up to eight layers) with light-gathering frequencies or precise spectral signature that allow the composition of roofs to be determined. Telespazio’s commercial director, Abraham Olivares, assures that it is possible to provide an accurate asbestos map of any medium-sized population in just two or three weeks and at reasonable cost.
L’Hospitalet, more than 3,000 homes with asbestos
Olivares, in the southern state L’Hospitalet de Llobregatfor example, Telespazio detected more than 3,000 buildings with asbestos. And in Madrid’s Orcasitas neighborhoodThere is asbestos on the roofs of at least 3,750 homes. The error rate of the algorithm is only 3%. The fastening technology used has the ability to distinguish its use in the construction of curved ceramic tiles from other bituminous. It may be more difficult to distinguish corrugated galvanized sheets that need to be removed from fibercement sheets (asbestos). After the analysis of the satellite photos, site visits are required to confirm the technical observation. Asbestos removal in homes is complex. An aqueous solution is often used to prevent the asbestos fibers from dispersing in air. Poor handling of the structure can be fatal for workers who must have received special training.
Although municipal elections in 2023 further slowed enforcement of the law, municipalities are expected to sooner or later see a new source of revenue in the form of property fines for asbestos control. their roofs have asbestos. Perhaps in this way the removal of private houses will be accelerated. Refurbishment companies also see asbestos rehabilitation and removal as a promising revenue opportunity.
Retreat should prioritize facilities and locations based on their degree of danger and exposure to the most vulnerable population. In any event, the public facilities or places at greatest risk should be managed before 2028. In the case of Catalonia, the Institut Cartogràfic i Geològic de Catalunya (ICGC) has been tasked with making a map of fiber cement roofs throughout. The region, which is expected to be opened for use by the end of 2023.
Asbestos, the silent poison
Asbestos is a general term that includes six silicate minerals. Due to its fibrous and non-flammable properties, it has been used extensively in the construction and industry sectors, especially between the 1950s and 1990s.
If materials containing asbestos are degraded by handling or degradation, they release microfibers that can enter the body through the respiratory tract and remain in the airway for decades.
This entry into the body can cause lung, larynx, and ovarian cancer, and two diseases caused by asbestos dust alone: asbestosis and malignant mesothelioma. While the first symptoms of asbestos appear 10 to 20 years after exposure to asbestos-containing material, any form of cancer from this exposure takes 20 to 40 years to appear, making early detection difficult.