On Brookline

Here’s what the Town of Brookline and the Boston Archdiocese will likely say at this afternoon’s information session on asbestos removal at their St. Aidan’s joint venture. They’ll say that residents have confused wetting asbestos (a generally accepted practice) with the “wet method”, a controversial practice of hosing buildings down while demolishing (in order to keep asbestos from becoming airborne).

I’m not confused. When it comes to asbestos abatement within a building’s interior, wetting and bagging asbestos is fine. Go to it.

But, as far as I can tell, there is a fair amount of asbestos (and lead) on the exterior of the buildings being demolished. That we know about. Folks, the older the building, the more likely you’re going to find asbestos…everywhere. You might get it all prior to demolition, you might not. How do you keep that asbestos from becoming airborne?

Now, the builders and the Town say that they are not using the wet method during demolition. Okay. What are they using to keep residents safe? Someone with a meter registering asbestos concentrations in the air, as the walls come tumbling down?

Please, someone hose me down.