Cal Mart Quells Asbestos Concerns
Answering concerns about potential health hazards at the California Mart, building executives this week said that they are complying with all federal and state guidelines relating to the handling of asbestos and other hazardous agents during renovation projects taking place in the building.
Cal Mart executives responded to an anonymous letter that accused the building of not complying with federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) guidelines. The Cal Mart, owned by Hertz Investments, is currently renovating part of the 13th floor in its “B” building for temporary exhibit space. The “A” and “B” buildings of the Cal Mart were built in the 1960s and contain asbestos, a construction material that was banned by the EPA in the early ’70s because it was linked to causing cancer.
The anonymous letter was originally sent to California Apparel News and addressed to the American Lung Association, the EPA, OSHA and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, as well as several media outlets. It charged the Cal Mart with failure to notify tenants about the threat of hazardous agents.
The letter accused Cal Mart management of a “haphazard approach” by failing to warn tenants about the renovation, and it warned of further potential threats as more planned construction gets underway and various tenants are shuffled to make way for the coming California Market Center gift showrooms.
Christopher Kalla, Hertz’s director of operations, said that notices warning visitors about asbestos are placed on the doors of each entrance to the Cal Mart. In addition, he said that the Cal Mart has hired an environmental consultant, Asbestos Analysis Laboratories, to monitor any possible release of asbestos in the buildings and added that the consultant, after conducting several tests, has found no harmful levels of asbestos.
“You can see our [warning] signs on the front doors,” said Kalla. “It’s in everybody’s lease. We’re not required to send out notices every time we relocate a light or something. If we are working around asbestos in an area more than 100 square feet, we are required to call an environmental hygienist, and we have. We’re trying to make it easy for the tenants to relocate and we invite any tenant to take a look at the job sites. We’re more than happy to show them.”
Kalla further explained that all ceilings and beams where asbestos is normally found have been covered in plastic sheathing during construction. —Robert McAllister
