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Asbestos Removal Jobs - What is the Job of a Hazardous Materials Worker? What does a Asbestos Removal Job Involve?
Hazardous waste material removers are responsible for identifying, transporting, removing, and disposing of hazardous materials which can include asbestos, radioactive materials, lead, mercury, and arsenic, among others. Alternate names for hazardous materials careers include abatement workers, remediation jobs, and decontamination workers.
Increased Federal and state regulations of hazardous materials has resulted from the publics concern about toxic waste materials in buildings and facilities that can pollute the environment and hurt human health. With these safety concerns, the work of asbestos removal workers has increased, and hazardous material jobs will involve using tools and equipment in order to remove these materials from buildings.
Hazardous material workers will use protective suits in order to protect themselves while they are cleaning up the material, and gear will typically include coveralls, gloves, shoe covers, goggles, face shields, and other equipment in order to protect their body from toxic materials. In extremely hazardous conditions, hazmat workers will have to wear respirators in order to protect them from dangerous airborne particles.
The two most common contaminants that hazmat worker jobs must deal with include asbestos and lead, as a result of asbestos being used for roofing, flooring, and asbestos insulation in the 1970s. The positive properties of asbestos include being fire retardant, corrosive resistant, durable, and an excellent insulator. Unfortunately, asbestos particles cause lung disease as a result of fibers getting tangled in the alveoli of the lungs.
Asbestos is rarely used in buildings today, however, there are still asbestos buildings that must be cleaned up by remediation workers. In the 1970s, lead was also commonly used in paint and plumbing fixtures, but it can cause mental retardation in children, especially when they eat chips of paint that contain lead. As a result, lead was removed from American products.
Asbestos abatement workers and lead abatement workers are responsible for removing lead and asbestos from existing buildings. Using vacuums and scrapers, asbestos workers will remove asbestos and lead from various surfaces. Lead abatement involves applying a special compound with a knife and then allowing it to dry, at which point the paint can then be scraped off the wall and put in a container for transport.
Sand blasters and water sprayers can also be used in order to remove toxic lead from commercial buildings. Asbestos vacuums have special filters which are designed in order to trap the fibers, which are then disposed of. Special monitors are used in order to measure the asbestos and lead in the atmosphere in order to protect the health of the workers, and monitoring devices will be used to identify the various toxic chemicals and materials that need to be removed from walls and structures.
Due to the possibility of hazardous materials being spilled on route to a disposal facility, emergency disaster response workers are responsible for cleaning up hazardous materials after trucking and train accidents.
Some hazardous material jobs will deal exclusively in radioactive substances, which can range from protective clothing and medical equipment to nuclear reactor fuels.
Decontamination technician jobs involve using brooms and mops in order to clean areas that have been exposed to radiation, and these jobs are increasingly being done by robots that are controlled away from the contamination site, due to the dangerous risk of radiation exposure.
Radiation protection technician jobs involve locating and evaluating the dangers of radioactive materials, and using high pressure cleaning devices in order to decontaminate a radioactive site.
Decontamination workers are responsible for removing radioactive materials exclusively created by nuclear power plants. When a power plant is decommissioned, a decommissioning worker will decontaminate the facility and remove any radioactive or contaminated objects.
Hazardous waste storage and disposal jobs involve transporting hazardous materials to waste or disposal sites where they will be stored. The Environmental Protection Agency and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration highly regulate the transport of hazardous material, and at landfills there are strict procedures for storing hazardous materials.
In 1980, the superfund program was enacted in order to clean up the Americas hazardous waste sites. Accidentally (or intentionally) spilled and dumped hazardous waste poses a threat to human health, and the EPA has been busy cleaning up hazardous waste sites with the cooperation of communities and local and state governments in order to improve the environment.
Another form of hazmat job involves mold remediation, where remediators will remove mold that can cause allergic reactions in some individuals. Mold is the type of fungi that grows in humid conditions such as heating and air ducts, walls, showers, attics, and basements. Large scale mold removal is typically handled by removal workers.
Hazardous material workers will usually erect contamination barriers in order to prevent the public from being exposed to dangerous mold, asbestos, lead, or radiation, and their work is closely supervised. Hazmat work can be planned years in advance in order to ensure the safety of the workers in the public, and it is highly team oriented.
Working Conditions for Asbestos Removal Jobs - How is the Working Environment for Asbestos Removal Jobs?
Hazardous material workers work in a highly organized environment in order to prevent risks to their health. Each phase of hazardous material removal is closely scrutinized but even with these controls, the strain of the job can be tough.
Asbestos jobs can involve standing and kneeling for long periods of time, and they must frequently work in hot and stuffy protective suits, which can cause some asbestos workers to have claustrophobia.
40 hour workweeks are common for hazmat jobs, although overtime is common and disaster situations will require additional hours. Asbestos and lead remediation workers will typically work in office buildings, schools, and historical buildings, that are being renovated, and the work itself would require night and weekend work, so as not to disturb tenants.
Nuclear decontamination workers and decontamination technicians will typically work in electrical power plants and nuclear facilities, which are often far away from urban areas, creating the need to travel to a nuclear plant job.
Hazardous materials workers must have a strong mind in order to deal with the stress of dealing with nuclear waste on a daily basis. Travel can be extensive, as affected buildings are usually great distances apart.
Asbestos Removal Education - How to Become a Asbestos Removal Worker - How to Receive Your Asbestos Removal Training
Asbestos removal training usually involves 40 hours of on the job experience. Asbestos training guidelines are set by the Federal government and states.
Asbestos Removal Training Requirements - How to Become a Hazardous Material Worker
Asbestos worker and lead worker training to remove contaminants includes meeting standards set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Most hazmat employee training is offered in house, and covers all the aspects and safety procedures that are outlined by OSHA.
In order to become an emergency response worker or a waste disposal worker, it is necessary to obtain a Federal license which covers health hazards, protective clothing, hazardous waste site safety, recognition of hazards, and hazardous material decontamination.
Most hazardous material workers will be certified in multiple types of contaminants in order to have the best employment opportunities. Decontamination worker training at nuclear power plants requires the most extensive training of all.
Nuclear waste removal requires a special training course offered by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which will take up to three months to complete. It is common for all remediation jobs to involve a refresher classes every year in order to maintain hazmat licensing.
Asbestos Removal Employment - What is a Asbestos Removal Job?
Over the next decade, hazardous material jobs should increase by about 11%, with most growth resulting from mold remediation and an increase in the construction of nuclear power plants.
Since the 1970s, asbestos and lead have not been included in buildings, and most commercial sites have had these components removed from their structures. Demand for asbestos jobs and led removal workers will remain fairly flat.
Radiation safety technicians and decommissioning workers will grow in number due to a desire for safer nuclear energy, and the nation’s superfund project will involve the cleanup of hazardous waste sites, which is mostly determined by the rate of Federal funding.
Job prospects for hazardous material removers are still fairly strong, with those working as decontamination workers having the best possibilities for employment. Asbestos jobs are much more difficult to find, as remediation is occurring at a slower pace.
Positive aspects of hazardous material removal employment while working for an asbestos contractor include minimal employment losses resulting from economic downturn.
Asbestos Removal Pay Scale - How Much Do Asbestos Remover Earn?
In 2006, hazardous material jobs had hourly earnings on median of $17.04. The highest 10% of hazmat jobs paid over $28.45 an hour, and remediation jobs and asbestos removal jobs had hourly earnings of $16.75.