Youngstown State University of Youngstown, Ohio is one of the latest recipients of federal stimulus money to remediate asbestos issues. The university’s Garfield Building is in good company, with Toledo’s Madison Building and Midtown Cleveland Inc.’s Agora theater all receiving $ 200,000 each in Brownfield Revolving Loan Fund grant for asbestos removal.
Asbestos is a highly hazardous mineral that was commonly used in construction prior to the late 1980′s when it was finally banned. Asbestos his been linked to all sorts of respiratory diseases, but some of the most commonly associated and most fatal include asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma, a rare cancer of the protective lining of the heart, lungs, chest and abdomen.
“The removal of this asbestos in this particular facility is in anticipation of future redevelopment of the building for research labs and those sort of facilities and potential classrooms for the STEM [Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics] College,” explained YSU spokesman Ron Cole.
The Garfield Building has been vacant for years because it requires significant renovations that the university has not been able to afford until now. While asbestos is being removed – the first step in any renovation – the university will be looking for future funding sources to complete the remodeling. Renovations are expected to being within the next three months.
With the asbestos removed, no longer will the Garfield Building building pose a health or environmental health threat to the YSU campus. Although asbestos is relatively safe if left undisturbed, in the event of a fire or a cave in, the building could release millions of carcinogenic asbestos fibers, generating a campus wide exposure that could lead to the development of asbestos cancer.
