Canberra's construction industry could face weeks of delays, with plasterboard distributor Boral shut down yesterday over fears for the safety of workers.
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Late yesterday, WorkSafe ACT issued the Barrier Street plasterboard distribution centre with a prohibition notice, forcing the company to immediately close its doors.
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For months the agency had been working with Boral over fears crumbling asbestos walls in the ageing Fyshwick building were placing workers in danger.
Work Safety commissioner Mark McCabe said company practice was to stack plasterboard against the asbestos walls. Workers reported fork lifts regularly struck the walls, breaking asbestos sheeting apart.
As The Canberra Times revealed last fortnight, WorkSafe ACT had ordered a clean-up of the site and had also issued an improvement notice.
It also required the company to conduct regular tests to ensure workers were not put at risk and ordered Boral to screen workers for any exposure to the dangerous substance.
A series of independent tests commissioned by Boral had come back with the all-clear, but on Friday WorkSafe conducted its own independent tests.
Yesterday, WorkSafe received results revealing the presence of asbestos on the factory floor.
''As soon as people walk over it, it can go into the atmosphere,'' Mr McCabe said yesterday.
''It's a really low risk, but the consequences can be quite high.
''We have found material on the site that's not secure.''
The shutdown notice will remain in place until WorkSafe is satisfied the site is clear, which could take days, weeks or even months.
Boral would have to replace all the walls of the ageing factory to ensure no asbestos remained, he said.
Another option would be to move the stock to another premises, but Mr McCabe said it would likely have to be cleaned to ensure no traces of asbestos were on the plasterboard sheeting.
Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union ACT branch secretary Dean Hall said the union ''commends'' WorkSafe for its action in shutting down the Boral factory.
''But we also have concerns for workers that work there now, workers that have worked there in the past and the public,'' Mr Hall said.
After The Canberra Times raised the safety concerns earlier this month, a former warehouse manager, who declined to be named, gave evidence to WorkSafe about working conditions at the factory.
The former worker alleged that:
- On numerous occasions fork lifts would collide with lower parts of the asbestos walls. At times this caused asbestos to crack or break and on, occasion, this resulted in pieces of asbestos breaking off the walls;
- Usually no action was taken to deal with cracked or broken asbestos unless the break in the wall was large enough for a potential security breach;
- Broken asbestos was left lying on the floor in the warehouse for periods of time; and
- When broken asbestos on the warehouse wall was repaired, it was done by contractors who wore specialist suits and masks. While the repairs were done, employees would continue to be work in the vicinity of the repairs. The prohibition notice will remain in place until WorkSafe is satisfied that Boral has removed risks to workers. Comment was sought from Boral.