Asbestos In Homes: A Guide to Identification, Testing & Removal

NOTE: There are a suite of short, specific videos available on identification, testing, removal and clearance certificates plus a 30 second promotional video. View Showcase on Vimeo or below.

Asbestos In Homes: Showcase

Asbestos In Your Home: The Ultimate Renovators Guide

NOTE: Since this video was produced, in accordance with revised information supplied by the Asbestos Safety and Eradication Agency (A.S.E.A), the year of residential asbestos usage has been extended from 1987 to 1990.

Asbestos was widely used in the manufacture of building materials and other products prior to being phased out by 1990 and banned in 2003. Therefore:

• If your home was built or renovated prior to 1987 it is ‘highly likely’ that it contains products incorporating asbestos.
• If your home was built or renovated between 1987 and 1990 it is ‘likely’ that it may contain some asbestos-containing materials.
• However, if your home was built or renovated after 1990 it is ‘unlikely’ that asbestos-containing materials will be present.

A Current Affair – Mission To Save Lives

Community Service Announcement – Renovation Roulette

Betty on the Open Road!

NOTE: NOTE: Since this video was produced, in accordance with revised information supplied by the Asbestos Safety and Eradication Agency (A.S.E.A), the year of residential asbestos usage has been extended from 1987 to 1990.

Lindsay Wall: The Dangers of Asbestos For Tradies

The day before his 21st Birthday, Lindsay Wall began his apprenticeship as a fitter and turner. He was exposed to asbestos fibres in his day-to-day work. Tragically, Lindsay passed away from mesothelioma on 8 November 2019. He was only 65 years-old. Lindsay wanted to share his story with other tradies in the hope that they would take the warnings seriously and avoid any exposure to asbestos fibres that can kill. Please share his story with your family, friends and tradie work mates and together we can help save lives.

Community Service Announcement – Go Slow 2017

NOTE: Since this video was produced, in accordance with revised information supplied by the Asbestos Safety and Eradication Agency (A.S.E.A), the year of residential asbestos usage has been extended from 1987 to 1990.

Dangers of Cladding Over Asbestos

HAZARD: Pressure Cleaning Asbestos Roofs

Betty’s Central Australia Tour: NT, SA & Far West NSW

 

Losing Breath – The Adam Sager Story – WorkSafe Queensland

Instruction Guides

SafeWork NSW and WorkSafe QLD have developed a series of videos to help inform  the community about the dangers of asbestos and how to manage asbestos-containing videos safely.

No matter which state or territory you live in, these videos will act as a guide on how to manage asbestos safely in the workplace including:

Asbestos Hazards, Risks and Identification

Setting Up Your Asbestos Work Area   

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) 

Safe Handling and Controls (Drilling)

Decontamination

Pressure Cleaning of Asbestos Roofs

Pressure Cleaning Asbestos Roofs – Safety Alert

Dangers of Cladding Over Asbestos

ASBESTOS – STORM & WIND DAMAGE

Multilingual Videos

ARABIC

• Pressure Cleaning – Arabic 
• Pressure Cleaning Asbestos Roofs Safety Alert – Arabic

CANTONESE

• Pressure Cleaning – Cantonese
• Pressure Cleaning Asbestos Roofs Safety Alert – Cantonese

MANDARIN

• Pressure Cleaning – Mandarin
• Pressure Cleaning Asbestos Roofs Safety Alert – Mandarin

VIETNAMESE

• Pressure Cleaning – Vietnamese
• Pressure Cleaning Asbestos Roofs Safety Alert – Vietnamese

Please note that Betty’s appearances and tours have currently ceased due to a lack of funding and the COVID-19 pandemic.

We are currently seeking funding to help further Betty’s vital work in the prevention of asbestos-related diseases.

To partner with Asbestos Awareness and become a sponsor of Betty and the vehicle that tows her, please contact us to request a Partnership Prospectus.

For any enquiries about having Betty visit your community at a later date please visit the Betty Booking Page

Betty is a popular girl! We receive multiple requests each week from councils, community groups and organisations to have her visit their events or communities around NSW – she also receives requests from other states! You can often find Betty at a Bunnings Warehouse!

Due to the nature of Betty, she has a number of special requirements and is unfortunately unable to attend all events because of her size, shape and the practicality of moving her. While we will make every effort to accommodate requests, we cannot guarantee Betty will be able to attend every event request or be available for multiple days. Each request is assessed on a case-by-case basis and against a set of criteria which includes the location, duration, and potential number of visitor to an event plus community need.

Please note that Betty’s appearances and tours have currently ceased due to a lack of funding and the COVID-19 pandemic. If you are interested in having Betty visit your community or attend your event please contact us using the below form and we will be in touch shortly.

We are currently seeking funding to help further Betty’s vital work in the prevention of asbestos-related diseases.

To partner with Asbestos Awareness and become a sponsor of Betty and the vehicle that tows her, please contact us to request a Partnership Prospectus.

Betty Booking Request Form

A Current Affair – Mission To Save Lives

Betty on the Open Road!

Betty’s Central Australia Tour: NT, SA & Far West NSW

Every year during National Asbestos Awareness Month, the Blue Lamington Drive has played a significant role in raising awareness of the dangers of asbestos through creating forums for community discussion and fundraising to support the Asbestos Awareness campaign and to ensure the website is funded to continue providing essential, free life-saving information to the Australian people.

To host a Blue Lamington Drive during National Asbestos Awareness Month you can register or make a donation through the Blue Lamington Drive MyCause Page.

Every dollar raised will help educate Australians about the dangers of asbestos and provide free resources to the community. Donations $2 or more are fully tax deductible.

REGISTER BLUE LAMINGTON DRIVE

 

 

REGISTER NOW!
Councils are the first point of contact with their communities. By participating in the campaign, Councils actively engage with their community to promote awareness of asbestos in and around homes and the dangers to homeowners when asbestos is disturbed. Participation in the campaign can also aid in preventing the dumping of asbestos in communities by raising awareness of the issue through local media and events.

BENEFITS TO PARTICIPATING COUNCILS INCLUDE

• Awareness of Council taking a leadership role in addressing asbestos issues at a local level.
• Media coverage of Council’s proactive approach to asbestos.
• Inform your constituents about the safe management of asbestos.
• Reduce incidences of unsafe asbestos management practices.
• Reduce incidences of illegal dumping of asbestos products.
• Recognition as being a major contributor to Asbestos Awareness Month on asbestosawareness.com.au.
• Low cost to participate – access to pre-prepared relevant information and images.
• Leverage Council’s brand in line with national media and advertising.

EASE OF USE FOR COUNCIL PARTICIPANTS

To make it easy for Council to participate, all campaign collateral is easily downloadable from the asbestosawareness.com.au website including; posters, flyers, pre-prepared media release templates, multilingual posters and flyers, photographs of asbestos products commonly found in homes, copy and graphics for print and online use, and the Asbestos Awareness website logo which can be utilised in all Council collateral to promote awareness.

For access to all Council collateral including media release templates you will need to register your participation. All registered Councils will be eligible to submit an award entry submission.

PAST COUNCIL PARTICIPATION

In 2017 for the second consecutive year 100% of Councils Australia wide participated in the National Asbestos Awareness Month Campaign.  In 2016, of the 563 councils across Australia, 100% officially registered their participation in Asbestos Awareness Month, the highest number of council participants since the campaign launched in 2012. 

Since 2018 when funding ceased, it’s pleasing to see the ongoing support of so many Councils for the National Asbestos Awareness Month Campaign in their commitment to better inform their communities about the dangers of asbestos and how to manage it safely.

TESTIMONIALS

“The benefit of Council in participating in this campaign has been the ongoing improvements in the areas of illegal dumping of asbestos as well as the illegal boarding of asbestos into our community. This along with the increase in awareness across our community has brought benefits to both our organisation and community as a whole by making our community and work areas safer with the decrease in illegal dumping.” District Council of the Copper Coast, Regional SA

“Nillumbik Shire Council was very pleased to participate in Asbestos Awareness Month. This program has given Council another avenue to engage with our citizens and represents a positive step forward in Council’s role in protecting our community’s wellbeing” Nillumbik Shire Council, Metropolitan Victoria

“As a result of our participation in Asbestos Awareness Month I believe our community has a better understanding of where asbestos can be found and how it should be collected. We as a local government are here to serve our community and ensure their wellbeing. If we can save one life, that’s awesome. If all we can do is tackle illegal dumping of asbestos, then that is great too” Cook Shire Council, Regional QLD

“By running such a campaign the entire council, Councillors and residents and general community are made aware of the dangers of asbestos. Cooma-Monaro Council like many regional centres has the majority of housing which was built with asbestos fibro sheeting. Many renovators of these older houses start a “minor” renovation without any consideration of the materials which they are removing or sanding. Awareness campaigns such as Asbestos Awareness Month bring the information to the forefront of people’s minds so that dangerous activities can be avoided”. Cooma-Monaro Council, Regional NSW

“While Holroyd City Council strives to continually enhance its education programs and improve management of asbestos within our community, participation in Asbestos Awareness Month further challenges and motivates us to think outside the square and come up with new and innovative ways to engage the community about asbestos related issues” Holroyd City Council, Metropolitan NSW

Register Now!

 

The Bettys – Asbestos Awareness Month Campaign Awards

‘The Betty’s’ were launched in 2013 to recognise the outstanding commitment of registered participants who were actively engaged in raising awareness of the dangers of asbestos during Asbestos Awareness Month.

General Award Categories

Best Asbestos Awareness Month Campaigner 2013: Business or Corporate

• Winner: Jim’s Building Inspections Australia
• Highly Commended: Slater & Gordon Lawyers

Best Asbestos Awareness Month Campaigner 2013: Government Department or Organisation

• Winner: Networks NSW

Council Award Categories

Most Innovative Asbestos Awareness Month Campaigner 2013:

• National Winner: Holroyd City Council

Most Active Asbestos Awareness Month Campaigner 2013: Metropolitan Council

• Winner: Holroyd City Council
• Honourable Mentions: Leichhardt Council & Pittwater Council

Most Active Asbestos Awareness Month Campaigner 2013: Regional Council

• Winner: Liverpool Plains Shire Council
• Highly Commended: Cooma Monaro Shire Council
• Commended: Wollongong City Council
• Honourable Mentions: Blue Mountains City Council & Alice Springs Town Council

Register Now for Asbestos Awareness Month!

Councils, associations, organisations, community groups and government departments are invited to participate in the ‘National Asbestos Awareness Month Campaign’. Your participation can be large or small. 

Organisations who actively participate in the Asbestos Awareness Campaign will be eligible to enter the Betty Awards which recognise outstanding contributions to raising awareness about the dangers of asbestos. Details of the award submission process will be provided to all registrants. For details click here.

Participation can include but is not limited to:

• Distribute media release to promote your organisational support for asbestos awareness (templates are available to registered organisations).
• e-newsletters and newsletters include information about Asbestos Awareness Month
• Feature Asbestos Awareness Banner Tiles and links to asbestosawarness.com.au on your website
• Feature the Asbestos Awareness Logo on all suitable material to promote the website.
• If public health orders permit, hold a Covid Safe ‘Blue Lamington Drive’ morning or afternoon tea as a forum to discuss asbestos awareness with staff and/or guests from external groups.
• Host a ‘Asbestos Awareness Month challenge’ to raise awareness of asbestos in your community.
• Host information sessions for staff and communities.
• Include the Asbestos Awareness Month Email Signature in all outgoing emails.
• Incorporate the radio ads as on-hold music. Use the television ads on public promotional TVs.
• Host a Tradies Breaky– to educate tradies and home handymen about the dangers of asbestos.
• Mention asbestos awareness in the Mayoral column.
• Print and display posters and brochures.
• Promote Asbestos Awareness Month on your Blog, Facebook and Twitter.
• Promote Asbestos Awareness to all relevant groups in your community to engage their support for the campaign including; TAFE, Trade schools, all trades and trades associations relevant to building and renovating and local hardware stores.
• Promote the Asbestos Awareness message on all Council materials distributed to the community including rate notices and newsletters. This can be done simply by including the Asbestos Awareness logo.
• Publish information on your website and intranet sites.

Registered Organisations Receive

• Briefing Notes.
• Asbestos Awareness Month media release template – organisations may add their logo, a quote from Mayor/CEO and distribute to your local or industry related print, radio, online and if relevant, television media.
• Graphics – Asbestos Awareness Logo, website banner tiles, email signature for use in outgoing emails.
• Radio ads – for use in place of “on hold” music for telephone systems.
• Television ads – for use in shop-front displays if relevant.
• Posters and brochures – in both print-ready files and in PDFs.
• Photographs of asbestos products and other relevant images including a diagram of a house.
• Background Copy – 300 and 115 words.

Register Now for Asbestos Awareness Month!

Community & Media Engagement

National Asbestos Awareness Month provides a number of resources for businesses, organisations, individuals and governments to participate in the campaign to help increase awareness of the dangers of asbestos in a wide variety of communities. 

Register now to access a wide range of FREE communication resources.

Blue Lamington Drive

Every year during National Asbestos Awareness Month, the Blue Lamington Drive has played a significant role in raising awareness of the dangers of asbestos through creating forums for community discussion and fundraising to support the Asbestos Awareness campaign and to ensure the website is funded to continue providing essential, free life-saving information to the Australian people.

To host a Blue Lamington Drive during National Asbestos Awareness Month you can register or make a donation through the Blue Lamington Drive MyCause Page.

Every dollar raised will help educate Australians about the dangers of asbestos and provide free resources to the community.

REGISTER BLUE LAMINGTON DRIVE

 

 

Betty – The Asbestos Awareness & Education House

Since Betty was launched at Circular Quay in Sydney in 2012, every November, Betty the Asbestos Awareness & Education House has toured communities throughout NSW and Australia educating people about where asbestos might be found in and around homes built or renovated prior to 1990, and how they can manage asbestos safely.

After exhibiting at a number of community events, visiting hundreds of communities and travelling more than 65,000 kilometres throughout NSW, VIC, QLD, SA, NT, ACT and Tasmania, in 2018, following the transfer of oversight of the National Asbestos Awareness Month Campaign from SafeWork NSW to the NSW EPA, funding for Betty’s community education tours and exhibitions has been minimal.

We are currently seeking funding to help further Betty’s vital work in the prevention of asbestos-related diseases.

For information about Betty or to find out how you can help, click here.

Follow Betty’s Adventures

Since 2012, Betty has taken her potentially life-saving message to hundreds of communities in all states and territories except WA.  Due to a lack of funding and the current COVID pandemic, Betty’s has been off the road but you can see the impact Betty has had on the communities she’s visited here.

Follow Betty on Facebook.

Ambassadors

A number of celebrity ambassadors have committed their support to the campaign including; ‘Australia’s Queen of Renovating’ Cherie Barber, Barry Du Bois, Scott McGregor and Scott Cam. Read about our ambassadors.

Council Participation

Over the years Council participation in the National Asbestos Awareness Month campaign achieved a 100% participation rate with 100% of Councils across Australia officially registering their participation in the campaign achieving a record in Australia for the highest number of council participants in any community health awareness campaign. We are most grateful to all Councils who’ve utilised our resources to educate your communities on safe asbestos management.

For information about how your council can participate click here.

Community Service Announcements

To increase awareness of asbestos you can download our FREE 30 second Community Service Announcement for television and radio which you can share across social media channels. To view the ad click here or to download the radio or television ad click here.

We also have a variety of web banners for online use and print ads available for filler space or company newsletters.