Schools, school districts and post-secondary
Hazardous materials abatement for schools and campuses
Schools and campuses have short summer and break windows, students and staff in the building, and boards that need defensible paperwork. Bowfinn plans the phasing with you around the academic calendar, keeps work areas cleared and sealed off from occupied space and closes out with documentation your procurement and facilities teams can file.
- Occupied facilitiesContained work areas, phasing planned with you to limit disruption
- UA Local 170Signatory contractor
- Trained and certified crewsOn every asbestos abatement job
- InsuredInsurance certificates available on request.
What makes these projects different
- Short summer, spring-break and holiday windows
- Students, staff and the public sharing the building
- Board, district and procurement documentation requirements
- Institutions doing some abatement in-house still need trained and certified workers and licensed contractors for outside work
How we work
- Calendar-driven phasing agreed with facilities staff
- Containment, with air sampling outside the enclosure by your independent hazmat consultant where unprotected people are nearby
- Single point of contact for facilities, consultant and trades
- Closeout documentation for each phase, as the project requires
Procurement and documents
We can talk through school district and post-secondary vendor requirements during your consultation.
Frequently asked questions
Can the rest of the building stay in use during abatement?
Often, yes, with planning, but not the area being worked on. That area is cleared, restricted and signed, and for high-risk work it is fully enclosed until clearance. The regulation also requires prevention of spread to other areas and daily air sampling outside the containment when unprotected workers are nearby (OHS Regulation ss. 6.12–6.13, 6.21). How much of the building has to be closed depends on the scope. We plan the sequence, phasing and timing with you, including night and weekend shifts, so the rest of the facility is disrupted as little as possible.
Our university or health authority does some asbestos work in-house. Do we still need a licensed contractor?
Not for your own staff's work on your own buildings, according to WorkSafeBC's licence table, but those workers still need certificates. Any outside contractor you hire must be licensed (WorkSafeBC).
How is air outside the work area checked?
During high-risk work (other than glove-bag work), the employer must sample air outside the containment at least daily if unprotected workers are in the area, and results must be available to workers within 24 hours (s. 6.12(2)–(3)).
General information, not legal advice. Requirements depend on your project; confirm with WorkSafeBC, your municipality or a qualified professional.
Planning work in an older building?
Book a Site Consultation and we'll walk the scope, the schedule and the building with you.
Prefer email? admin@bowfinn.com