The removal and phasing out of asbestos containing products is a long term task, because of the large quantity of such products as well as large amount of financial resources necessary for this project. It has been estimated that this process will
Take about 30 years. The only method of the neutralization of asbestos-containing wastes is their deposition in landfills. The removal of asbestos and asbestos-containing products will require the making of 84 asbestos landfills in
2003-2032. As long as the fibers are not released into the air and are not breathed, products containing asbestos do not pose threat to human health. Acceptable concentration of asbestos dust in the air in Poland is 1000 fibers/m^ of air in a 24-hour time interval.
Insulation materials (17.06.01.*) and construcfion materials (17.06.05.*) containing asbestos, after fulfilling the conditions that asbestos fibres cannot be released into the environment, can be neutralized easily and cheaply, despite the fact that they are listed in the catalogue as hazardous wastes. Particularly suitable for their deposifion are external and internal waste heaps of open cast mines.
The following facts make such locations favourable:
- the deposition will take place in the areas mines have legal title to.
- the areas of landfills have already been degraded by mining.
- mines possess
