Guidelines asbestos contaminated sites

Guidelines for the assessment, remediation and management of asbestos contaminated sites

In Western Australia (WA), the legacy of asbestos use has resulted in asbestos contaminated sites becoming an important issue.

The intent of the Guidelines is to ensure that asbestos contaminated sites are identified early and managed effectively.

These Guidelines (2021 update) consider community expectations and concerns regarding the management of asbestos. They also conform with the National Strategic Plan for Asbestos Awareness and Management 2019-23 (external site), developed by the Australian Government Asbestos Safety and Eradication Agency. The national strategy promotes prioritised removal of asbestos. As such, remediation often occurs once there is confirmation that asbestos contaminated soils are present above screening criteria with detailed risk-based assessments occurring less often than for other soil contaminants.

In WA, the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (DWER) (external site) is the primary regulator of contaminated sites and the CS Act administrator. However, DWER seeks advice from other agencies on asbestos-related issues due to the significance of asbestos exposure to human health and the broader legislative framework for asbestos regulation and control. These Guidelines are approved by DWER.

The guidelines are presented below and may be downloaded as a compete pdf file or by Chapter.

Complete document (PDF 4.1 MB)

Chapter 1: Introduction (PDF 391 KB)

Scope, application and definitions

Chapter 2: Framework for responding to asbestos contamination (PDF 270KB)

Decision to report and common asbestos contamination scenarios

Chapter 3: Assessment of asbestos contaminated sites (PDF 665KB)

Site investigation and assessment process

Chapter 4: Characterisation of contamination (PDF 64KB)

Summarising findings

Chapter 5: Sampling and analysis (PDF 505KB)

Developing a sampling plan and soil and air sampling methodology