Asbestos Cement (AC) pipe was used widely in the mid 1900s in potable water distribution systems. Since the lifetime of this product is approximately 70 years, updating this infrastructure may involve removal of the pipe. This presentation reviews options for managing, maintaining, and removing AC pipe.

1. Municipal Water Systems
and AC Pipe
Kevin R. Murray, Partner
Holland & Hart LLP

2. Important Information
This presentation is similar to any other seminar designed to
provide general information on pertinent legal topics. The
statements made and any materials distributed as part of this
presentation are provided for educational purposes only. They do
not constitute legal advice nor do they necessarily reflect the
views of Holland & Hart LLP or any of its attorneys other than the
speakers. This presentation is not intended to create an attorney-
client relationship between you and Holland & Hart LLP. If you
have specific questions as to the application of the law to your
activities, you should seek the advice of your legal counsel.
All Presentations and Other Materials © Holland & Hart LLP 2014

3. Emergencies

4. Emergencies

6. Asbestos Cement Pipe
Asbestos Cement (AC) pipe was used widely in
the mid 1900s in potable water distribution
systems. Since the lifetime of this product is
approximately 70 years, updating this
infrastructure may involve removal of the pipe.
The cement acts as a binder that holds the
asbestos fibers within a solid matrix.
This usually prevents asbestos fibers from being released easily, unless
mismanaged, damaged, or in badly weathered conditions, in which case
removal or replacement may be a regulated activity.

8. Regulatory Regime
• The Utah Department of Environmental Quality (UDEQ), Division of Air
Quality (UDAQ), regulates the removal, handling, and disposal of asbestos-
containing materials during construction, remodeling, and demolition
• Asbestos is subject to regulation under:
– Utah Air Conservation Act
– Federal Clean Air Act
• As outlined by rule:
– Utah Administrative Code R307-801 (Utah Air Quality Rules)
– National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP)
• February 2014 Guidance: How to Handle Non-friable Asbestos Cement
Pipe
• UDEQ also relying on two EPA applicability determinations

9. Activities Subject to Regulation
• UDAQ and EPA consider work performed on AC
pipe to be “renovation” under UAC and NESHAP
• AC pipe is classified
as Category II Non-
Friable Asbestos
Containing Material

10. Activities Subject to Regulation
• The removal of non-friable
asbestos containing material
(ACM) in good condition is exempt
from most rules, but subject to
disposal restrictions
• You do not need to be a licensed
asbestos contractor or a DEQ
certified asbestos worker to
conduct non-friable asbestos
removal
– The key then is friable vs. non-
friable

11. Regulating Thresholds
• If during the demolition or renovation activity AC
pipe becomes crumbled, pulverized, or reduced
to powder, it is then potentially subject to the
substantive NESHAP and state regulations
• NESHAP regulations only apply if the combined
amount of RACM is at least 260 linear feet of
pipes
• However, State regulations apply more broadly, defining a project as
small, short-scale duration(SSSD) as one that removes or disturbs less
than three square or linear feet of RACM

12. Rendering AC Pipe Friable
• In settlement conferences, UDEQ had
expressed the position that using a
mechanical method that produces a
jagged edge converts AC pipe to
regulated asbestos-containing material
(RACM)
• Once RACM, various obligations are
triggered
• Negotiation ensued to create more
definitive guidance on methods designed
not to render the material friable
• The new rule

13. Removal and Maintenance of Non-friable AC
Pipe
• Removal and maintenance activities involving AC pipe
in good condition and in whole sections are not
regulated by DAQ Administrative Rules or Federal
Regulations
• Specifically, as long as the AC pipe is not crumbled,
pulverized, or reduced to powder and does not have a
high probability of becoming crumbled, pulverized, or
reduced to powder, you do not need to be a DAQ
certified asbestos company or use DAQ certified
asbestos workers to perform AC pipe removal or
maintenance activities

14. • If you perform removal or maintenance activities on AC pipe following
the hand methods in the new guide, the ACM does not have a high
probability of becoming crumbled, pulverized, or reduced to powder
and therefore the work would not be subject to Utah Asbestos
Administrative rules or Federal Asbestos Regulations
• When counting linear feet of RACM at a project site for the purposes
of determining the three linear foot threshold, only count material
crumbled, pulverized, reduced to powder, or otherwise reduced to a
friable state
• For disposal, one cannot separate friable from non-friable asbestos-
containing material, so the entire length of AC pipe must be disposed
of as friable
Removal and Maintenance of Non-friable AC
Pipe

15. • If more than three linear feet of AC pipe become
friable during removal or maintenance activities,
stop work immediately and promptly contact a DAQ
certified asbestos company that employs Utah
certified asbestos supervisors and workers
Removal and Maintenance of Non-friable AC
Pipe

16. Options for Managing, Maintaining, and
Removing Non-friable AC Pipe
• DAQ recommends that facilities with AC pipe use the
following methods to manage, maintain, or remove AC pipe:
– Snap cutters
– Carbide-tipped blade cutters
– Manual field lathes
– Wet tapping AC pressure pipe
– Dry tapping AC pressure pipe
– Manual rasp
– Chisel and rasp
– Hammer and chisel

17. Snap Cutting

18. Wet Saw

19. • AC pipe must be removed, handled, and disposed of in
a manner that keeps the material in whole pieces to be
considered non-friable.
• Sanding, sawing, grinding, or chipping with hand
methods will make AC pipe friable and must be
minimized
• Power tools make AC pipe friable, can generate large
mounts of dust, and must be avoided
• The AC pipe must be kept wet during removal
Options for Managing, Maintaining, and
Removing Non-friable AC Pipe

20. Notification
• If the amount of RACM that would be disturbed by
renovation activities is greater than the SSSD amount but
less than the NESHAP threshold, the operator must
submit an asbestos notification ten working days before
the start of the demolition project and a “less than
NESHAP” notification form at least one day before
commencing removal
• If the amount of RACM in the regulated facility is greater
than or equal to the NESHAP amount, the operator shall
submit an asbestos abatement project notification form
ten working days before the removal begins

21. Notification cont…
• The notification forms must follow the various
requirements of the UAC
• If the project is an emergency renovation,
notification must be submitted as soon as possible
before, and no later than, the next business day
after asbestos removal begins

22. Training Requirements
• If handling three feet or less of friable AC pipe, DAQ requires no
training or work practices
• DAQ expects that most maintenance or emergency work will not
be regulated
• DAQ strongly recommends, based on the Asbestos Hazard
Emergency Response Act (AHERA) 40 CFR Part 763.92, that all
workers receive two hours of asbestos awareness training and that
workers handling up to three linear feet of friable AC pipe have an
additional 14 hours asbestos training

23. Disposal
• Containerized
RACM must be
disposed of in a
landfill licensed to
receive RACM
• AC pipe, if not
rendered friable,
can be buried in
place

24. Leaving AC Pipe in Place
• The crushing or bursting of AC pipe causes the material
to become RACM and subject to Federal Asbestos
Regulations and Utah State Administrative Rules
• The backfilling and burial of crushed or burst AC pipe
would also potentially be subject to both federal and
state civil and criminal penalties
• Alternative methods for leaving AC pipe in place when
no longer in service include abandoning and burying
empty pipe or pumping grout into the pipe before
burying

25. Penalties
• No further action, warning letter, early administrative
settlement with penalty
• Civil penalty of up to $10,000 per day for each
violation
• Enforcement options
*Note this is UDEQ only, not UOSH