Spring Break Start Date and an Expired Supervisor Card
A Pennsylvania school district in Berks County schedules removal of 480 linear feet of 2-inch pipe insulation and 220 square feet of 12-inch by 12-inch floor tile with mastic from a 1962 middle-school cafeteria. The work is set to begin Monday, April 1, during spring break. The abatement contractor mails the PA DEP notification by certified mail on Friday, March 22. The district will operate a daycare program in an adjacent wing during the break. The contractor's on-site supervisor has a certification that expired 40 days ago; the crew's workers are certified. The contractor plans a mini-enclosure for the pipe runs and glovebags at the risers, and intends to remove the floor tile dry with a scraper. The district project manager asks whether the job can start on time and what must be fixed.
1. Does the notification meet Pennsylvania and NESHAP timing requirements? Show the working-day calculation and explain the effect of weekends and the scheduled start date.
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No. The project is a renovation that will disturb regulated asbestos-containing material above the NESHAP threshold: 480 linear feet of pipe insulation exceeds 260 linear feet, and 220 square feet of floor tile exceeds 160 square feet if the material is RACM. Pennsylvania requires the PA DEP notification to be received at least 10 working days before the start date; NESHAP uses the same 10-working-day concept. Counting from Friday, March 22, the available working days before Monday, April 1, are March 25, 26, 27, 28, and 29 only. The start date itself is not a working day that counts toward advance notice. That is five working days, not ten. Mailing on March 22 does not cure the defect, especially if receipt occurred later. The contractor must either delay the start until at least 10 working days after PA DEP receives a complete, accurate notification or submit a corrected notification and wait the required period. Starting April 1 would be a notification violation even if the crew and containment were otherwise ready.
2. What credential problem exists, and can the district use an uncertified maintenance employee to pull the floor tile to save money? Discuss PA Act 194 and AHERA.
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The on-site supervisor's certification expired 40 days ago, so he is not currently certified to supervise asbestos abatement in Pennsylvania. The crew workers being certified does not cure that defect: PA Act 194 requires the appropriate current certification for the asbestos occupation being performed, and a school abatement project also falls under AHERA's accreditation requirements. The district cannot substitute an uncertified maintenance employee for the floor tile removal. Floor tile with mastic must be treated as ACM unless valid sampling shows otherwise, and removal is asbestos work, not ordinary maintenance. Dry scraping also creates dust and is inconsistent with wet methods and dust suppression. Even if the tile were Category I non-friable material, the school setting and the need to remove mastic make it abatement work requiring accredited workers and supervision. The district should replace the supervisor with a currently certified supervisor, verify all worker certifications, and revise the work practice to wet methods and HEPA vacuuming before starting.
3. The contractor says the 220 square feet of floor tile is below the NESHAP threshold and can be left out of the notification. Evaluate that argument.
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The argument fails for two reasons. First, the threshold is not applied by adding only the floor tile. The project also includes 480 linear feet of pipe insulation, which by itself exceeds the 260-linear-foot threshold for RACM on pipes and is subject to NESHAP notification. The project cannot be split into small pieces to avoid notification. Second, 220 square feet exceeds the 160-square-foot threshold for RACM on other facility components if the floor tile and mastic are RACM. Floor tile with mastic is usually Category I non-friable material and may not be RACM unless it will be crumbled, pulverized, or reduced to powder, but dry scraping can create that condition, and the material still must be evaluated. The notification should describe the entire renovation, including the pipe insulation, floor tile, mastic, and any assumed ACM. Leaving the floor tile out would make the notification inaccurate and would not change the obligation to control the project as asbestos work.