Ohakune School Environmental Cleaning

Project:

An environmental clean of a 350m2 roof void in Ohakune School. We completed this project over two stages due to works happening in two separate buildings.

Location

Ohakune

Environmental Cleaning

Contaminated areas are very common in New Zealand, and we have attended numerous jobs that required an environmental clean in the past.

This is usually caused by cross-contamination from previous contractors, or by poor asbestos removal before the Health and Safety at Work (Asbestos) Regulations 2016 were introduced.

The Asbestos Removal Process at Ohakune School

As our PRO Environmental Team arrived on site, the first priority was to isolate the area. We immediately put our signage and barriers throughout our worksite to keep public and other contractors away.

The team then began to construct our enclosure, which consisted of timber framing to secure it and in keep it in good condition during removal works. We also connected speed docks directly to our enclosure.

Throughout site set up ‘transit routes’. These are polythene walkways from our enclosure to our 3m3 hazmat bags to ensure we keep the carpet clean . This also ensures that there is no cross contamination during the waste loadout process.

Prior to the enclosure going ‘live’ and our team starting the asbestos removal, we invited an independent assessor to check our set up and site. He used his background air monitoring unit to ensure there were no fibres escaping our enclosure during the removal and waste loadout process.

During removal works, we faced difficulties with temperature, working at heights, and confined spaces.

Environmental Cleaning Solutions from PROES

We cleaned the void from top to bottom, disposing of asbestos debris and insulation (and lots of them!). We then vacuumed the enclosure from top to bottom using H-Type vacuums, and wiped down surfaces with wet wipes. The independent assessor again checked the site for a final inspection.

All told, we finished with a total of ten 3m3 hazmat bags full of insulation and debris by the end of the project. This was safely removed and disposed of at the closest certified landfill.

Both stages were delivered in 14 days.