DFM→Division of Sustainability and Compliance→Asbestos Management

Asbestos Management

MCPS Asbestos Management Program

The goals of the Asbestos Management Program are to:

  • Manage the asbestos containing materials (ACM) in MCPS buildings to ensure that exposures to personnel and the environment are minimized and are below the Occupational Safety and health Administration (OSHA) permissible exposure limit (PEL);
  • Ensure that all maintenance, removal and disposal of ACM is compliant with all OSHA, EPA (AHERA/NESHAP), Maryland regulations;
  • Manage construction, demolition and maintenance asbestos projects including the contracting of licensed abatement firms, licensed abatement inspectors, management planners, project designers, and air monitoring consultants and/or in-house preparation of asbestos project design and inspection;
  • Manage in-house operations and maintenance activities including: training, medical surveillance, internal work permitting, monitoring and record keeping; and
  • Maintain and update MCPS Management Plans including: notifications, all records of asbestos surveys, air monitoring activities, asbestos work activities, medical surveillance, respiratory protection program and personnel exposures.

MCPS Asbestos Management Plan

The federal Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA) of 1986 requires local education agencies (LEAs) to inspect their schools for asbestos-containing building material and prepare management plans to prevent or reduce asbestos hazards. Asbestos Management Plans have been prepared for all Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) facilities. These plans outline the location and condition of ACM based on inspection of the facilities. The MCPS Asbestos Abatement Unit conducts semi-annual surveys of each facility with ACM to assess the condition of the material and to identify necessary remedial work. The inspection results are kept on file with the Asbestos Management Plans.

MCPS NESHAP Construction Compliance

Buildings are surveyed prior to renovation and demolition for asbestos. The National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) asbestos survey information is incorporated into the project specifications and design for occupant and labor safety purposes. NESHAP inspections include additional materials not generally included in the AHERA surveys referenced above. For instance, roofs and building exteriors are included in the NESHAP surveys whereas they are not included in AHERA asbestos surveys.

AHERA Annual Notification

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