The Australian Capital Territory has shut 70 public schools today after additional colored sand products were recalled over the weekend due to asbestos contamination. This makes the ACT the only jurisdiction to close public schools, while other states and territories have handled the issue differently, reminiscent of the COVID-19 pandemic response.
The national recall was issued by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission after laboratory testing detected tremolite, a type of naturally occurring asbestos, in colored sand products. The ACT Education Department closed 16 schools and six preschools on Friday, partially shutting eight others, before expanding the closures to 70 schools today.
ACT Work Health and Safety Commissioner Jacqueline Agius stated that only the ACT has so far detected products containing chrysotile asbestos, which was found in a sample seized from a stationery store. Education Minister Yvette Berry said the ACT's asbestos removal laws are the most rigorous in the country, partly due to the history of the Mr Fluffy scheme involving asbestos-laced insulation in the 1960s and 70s.
Under the ACT's Work Health and Safety Act, all asbestos removal must be carried out by a licensed removalist. While Catholic and independent schools in the ACT operate under the same legislation, they have not closed entire schools. The Catholic Education Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn isolated affected spaces for cleaning, and Independent Schools ACT said seven of its 18 schools found small samples and disposed of them with licensed assessors.
Outside the ACT, one independent school in Brisbane and another in Tasmania have closed, and two Catholic special schools in South Australia have temporarily closed for deep cleaning. The South Australian education department reported that more than 300 public schools have the colored sand on site but have not closed them. Officials and experts have stated that any asbestos found poses a low health risk.
