Mishandled asbestos removal in Kanesatake school resulted in delayed fall term

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A poorly executed asbestos removal procedure at a school in Kanesatake resulted in contraventions from the federal government and a delayed return to classes, the Montreal Gazette has learned.

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Issues with the removal procedure, which took place in mid-August, came to light at the end of the month and resulted in the last-minute postponement of the fall term at Ratihén:te High School by a week.

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“I had to make a conscious and moral, ethical decision to close the high school down until there was proper cleanup,” said Grand Chief Victor Akwirente Bonspille. “I had to take precautions and I could not allow our students or staff … or anybody to enter that building until it was properly cleaned.”

The situation was described as troubling by a person familiar with the detrimental effects of the carcinogenic mineral. The person raised concerns about the health risks for students and teachers if they were exposed.

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“It’s not that well known, but teachers are a group that are particularly vulnerable to dying from asbestos diseases, as are university professors because it was used in so many of the buildings they spend their whole lives in,” said Kathleen Ruff, a longtime human-rights activist who received the medal of the National Assembly for her work to stop the asbestos trade.

Work at Ratihén:te High School took place in the gymnasium following an environmental assessment by Indigenous Services Canada last year that concluded damaged vinyl tiles containing asbestos posed a health risk to anyone using the gym.

Bonspille said the initial contract was given to a company the community has worked with for decades, but that the contractor it sent “did not have a supervisor on site to make sure that all regulations and safeguards were taken.”

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The contractor said it was safe for children to return to the school for the start of the fall term, Bonspille said. Bonspille said he eventually became aware that proper procedures had not been followed, which prompted him to bring in the community’s environment department to evaluate the situation.

The department — which had not been made aware work was taking place until it was complete — decided to bring in an external firm for air and surface sampling. The resulting report includes several photographs taken while work was underway, documenting a large, open container filled with debris in the schoolyard, doors to the gymnasium left open (some leading to the school, others leading outdoors), the absence of warning signs on entrances to the work area, and ventilation systems left on.

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“The worker who was doing (the work) was not wearing any protective clothing, any protective goggles or air mask,” Bonspille said. “I just pray that nothing comes of this negligence.”

The firm concluded the building was not contaminated, but raised issues with the removal procedure, including that it was treated as low risk — it should have been considered high risk — and that waste was improperly managed.

“(The firm) was also told by the Mohawk Council of Kanesatake that the contractor has let volunteers managing the day camp access the storage facility located in the work area without any protection,” the report reads. “This situation should not have happened. Any worker entering an asbestos work area should wear the appropriate protection equipment, and all the materials need to be decontaminated before leaving an asbestos work area.”

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A single asbestos fibre was found on a water fountain, a discovery the firm described as negligible: “However, the work was not conducted following regulations, and could have harmed the health of the worker, the people working in the school along with the children who attend the daycare and the school.”

The fibre was a red flag for Bonspille.

“And the fact that the air vent was left on during the cleaning, the doors were not taped, sealed,” he said. “This is health and safety, this is life-threatening.”

The contravention from Employment and Social Development Canada, dated Oct. 11, is addressed to the chief on council who handled the contract. It indicates a number of provisions from the Canada Labour Code that were contravened during the asbestos removal procedure, particularly with regard to the lack of an asbestos exposure management program, the improper disposal of waste and the absence of a qualified person to perform air sampling during the work.

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A second contravention addressed to council says it contravened the Canada Labour Code by not having an established health and safety committee to deal with such matters. An email written by the investigator on the case notes decisions concerning health and safety of employees cannot be made by one chief without consultation of all council members “and especially the grand chief.”

Bonspille said there is no such health and safety committee, but that one will be created.

“This issue is going to be rectified, believe me, very quickly in my council,” he said. “I’m not going to stand by and allow this type of irresponsibility go under my watch. … I’m glad that the environment team was here to fix it. Because god forbid, if those children were able to go into the school without the second set of eyes there … it would have just been terrible.”

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Ruff said asbestos exposure remains the leading cause of workplace-related deaths in Canada today. The fact that governments have denied its harmfulness for years coupled with the fact that health effects do not show up immediately means the issue has not been taken as seriously as needed, she said.

“It seems like there was a very cavalier attitude, a very negligent attitude,” Ruff said of the removal procedure in Kanesatake. “You can’t play fast and loose with asbestos. It has deadly repercussions.”