Researchers are studying innovative solutions for managing asbestos waste, revealing a promising shift toward recycling this hazardous material into harmless, useful products.
Katharine Quarmby reports for BBC.
In short:
- In Rotterdam, asbestos is transformed into a non-hazardous material, potentially revolutionizing how we handle this global waste challenge.
- With millions of tonnes of asbestos posing risks worldwide, new methods aim to repurpose it safely, reducing environmental and health threats.
- The financial and practical viability of new methods remain to be seen. But concerns over asbestos in landfills are growing, with calls for sustainable disposal methods that prevent future exposure and environmental damage.
Key quote:
"Once it’s in landfill, it just stays there forever. People talk about removing asbestos but no asbestos has ever been removed, it has just been shifted from one place to another."
— Graham Gould, who runs the asbestos denaturing company, Thermal Recycling
Why this matters:
Asbestos, a naturally occurring mineral once popular in construction materials for its strength and resistance to heat, poses significant health risks, including lung cancer, asbestosis, and mesothelioma when its fibers are inhaled.
The failure to ban asbestos has resulted in widespread and potentially deadly chronic risks that reach down to our youngest citizens and their teachers.
