Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 24, December 18, 2024
(a)
This part of the regulations, adopted pursuant to P.L. 1975, c.217, the Uniform
Construction Code Act (N.J.S.A. 52:27D-119
et seq.) and entitled Asbestos Hazard Abatement Subcode shall be known and may
be cited throughout the regulations as N.J.A.C. 5:23-8 and when referred to in
this subchapter, may be cited as "this subchapter."
1. In addition, the New Jersey Departments of
Health and Labor have jointly adopted regulations pursuant to P.L. 1984, c.217,
the Asbestos Control and Licensing Act (N.J.S.A. 34:5A-32 et seq.) and are cited as N.J.A.C.
8:60, and N.J.A.C. 12:120, respectively. These regulations provide for: a
standardized training course for all asbestos workers; licensing of asbestos
abatement contractors; and issuing asbestos worker performance permits for
asbestos abatement workers.
i. Copies of
N.J.A.C. 12:120 may be obtained from the New Jersey Department of Labor,
Division of Workplace Standards, Asbestos Control and Licensing, PO Box 054,
Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0054. These rules provide that any asbestos abatement
project, excluding an operations and maintenance activity, must be conducted by
a licensed contractor pursuant to the referenced rules, including projects
involving buildings and structures which are not within the scope of this
subchapter.
2. The New
Jersey Department of Environmental Protection has authority to enforce
regulations regarding the transport and disposal of asbestos-containing
materials pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 13:1D-9 and
13:1E-1 et seq. These rules are
cited as N.J.A.C. 7:26.
i. Copies of N.J.A.C.
7:26 may be obtained from the New Jersey Department of Environmental
Protection, Division of Solid Waste Management, 840 Bear Tavern Road, PO Box
414, Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0414.
3. All samples collected and submitted for
analysis for asbestos pursuant to this subchapter shall be analyzed for
asbestos in accordance with
N.J.A.C.
5:23-8.21.
(b) Unless otherwise specifically provided,
all references to article or section numbers or to provisions not specifically
identified by number, shall be construed to refer to such article, section or
provision of this subchapter.
(c)
This subchapter, which pertains to educational facilities and public buildings
as defined in N.J.A.C. 5:23-8.2, shall control matters relating to:
construction permits for asbestos abatement; fees; licenses; certification;
work permits; reports required; documentation; inspections by the asbestos
safety technician; air monitoring; enforcement responsibilities; and remedies
and enforcement. This subchapter controls the abatement of asbestos from a
building. A construction permit for renovation or demolition shall be required
pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:23-2 for any other work performed subsequent to the
asbestos abatement project.
1. Any private
building that houses a day care center, nursery or educational facility shall
be subject to this subchapter when an asbestos hazard abatement project takes
place within the building or any part of the building regardless of the
remoteness of the facility or its size relative to the building. An asbestos
hazard abatement project shall have a construction permit from the enforcing
agency.
2. All common areas in a
building, or part thereof, leased by a public entity, such as, but not limited
to, building entrances and lobbies, rest rooms, cafeterias, hallways,
stairwells, and elevators where public employees may normally traverse and all
areas with mechanical equipment that serve the areas occupied by the public
employees, shall be subject to this subchapter when an asbestos hazard
abatement project takes place within the building or any part of the
building.
3. This subchapter shall
apply to exterior portions of buildings, such as: exterior hallways connecting
buildings; porticos; mechanical system insulation; cooling towers; and steam or
other service tunnels serving or connecting buildings. These exterior spaces
are to be considered, for the purposes of obtaining a construction permit
pursuant to this subchapter, a single homogeneous area for purposes of
abatement project design.
4.
Projects involving the removal of non-friable, miscellaneous
asbestos-containing material from interior spaces shall be subject to this
subchapter where the method chosen to remove the non-friable material may cause
the building environment to become contaminated with airborne asbestos fibers.
Removal shall be in accordance with
N.J.A.C.
5:23-8.20.
(d) Until further action is taken, this
subchapter remains advisory for all other buildings and structures in the
State.
(e) This subchapter seeks to
provide and ensure public safety, health, and welfare insofar as they are
affected by asbestos and asbestos-containing materials. It is not intended to,
nor shall it be construed to, conflict with or impede the operation of the
asbestos work standards issued by the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration,
29 CFR
Section 1910.1001 et seq., 29 CFR Section
1926.58 and N.J.A.C. 12:100-12, the Asbestos Subchapter of the New Jersey
Safety and Health Standards for Public Employees. The purpose of this
subchapter is to assure that work is performed in a safe manner as a
pre-condition to the issuance of a certificate of occupancy.
1. It is the purpose of this subchapter to
establish standards and procedures to ensure that all State laws and
regulations applicable to asbestos hazard abatement work are actually adhered
to wherever work takes place.
2.
Asbestos has been a pervasive construction material which in many of its forms
poses no significant health risk. These standards and procedures need not be
applied to all work involving asbestos-containing materials but only those
which pose serious health hazards to the public.
3. Asbestos that is, or that can readily
become, friable was a widely used construction material. Its removal,
replacement, repair, enclosure or encapsulation shall be considered
construction work and shall therefore require a construction permit issued
pursuant to the State Uniform Construction Code Act (N.J.S.A. 52:27D-119 et seq.). Asbestos and
asbestos-containing materials were, in many cases, used in order to satisfy
important code requirements pertaining to fire safety. Accordingly, where
asbestos was used originally to satisfy fire code requirements, it shall not be
removed unless it is replaced, as part of the project, with material or
assembly which has equivalent fire resistive or heat resistive characteristics.
Additionally, any encapsulation materials or methods shall conform to the
construction requirements of the Uniform Construction Code.
