Asbestos Monitoring and Consulting: Lookingglass School

Officials contacted G2 Consultants when they needed to ensure elementary school students and a local community were not at risk for harmful exposure to asbestos.

In December 2016, a fire destroyed Lookingglass Elementary School’s gymnasium. Crews were on site in early February to demolish the gym before they could begin completely clearing all debris from the site.

First, however, an asbestos abatement process needed to be completed to remove any potential for the public or students to be exposed to asbestos.

Officials knew asbestos was present at the Lookingglass Elementary School demolition site. But the fire made it difficult to determine where asbestos still lingered among the ruins. In need of an expert, they called in G2 Consultants to analyze and monitor the site for asbestos exposure.

The News-Review reported G2’s Todd Kreuter was on site taking air samples during the cleanup. Kreuter took a baseline test prior to the abatement and compared air samples during the abatement to ensure cleanup procedures did not pose any risk to the public or to students.

G2’s bulk sample testing prior to abatement provided a clear path to isolate the locations that contained asbestos. Materials that contained asbestos included the school’s tile floors, pipe insulation and wall paneling in the boiler room.

In June 2016, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported that Portland Public Schools released records indicating 13 pages of known instances of asbestos in public school buildings. Records indicate asbestos was commonly found in the schools’ insulation materials. Lookingglass Elementary School was not on the list, which was only a “sampling” of issues and not a complete list.

* Lookingglass is in Roseburg, and is in no way associated with PPS.

Many buildings built between 1920 and 1990s and newer contain asbestos, which is not harmful unless it is exposed. Asbestos fibers are dangerous when inhaled and are known to cause cancer and lung disease.

G2 offers asbestos testing services to determine if asbestos is in building materials so it may be safely removed. G2 will provide Lookingglass Elementary School officials with the legal documentation and agency reporting for their regulatory compliance needs.

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