Portage, WI - Tens of thousands of dollars are expected to be poured into an asbestos abatement project at the Columbia County Courthouse.
Along with the hallway ceilings on all three levels, 16 other areas of the 46 year old building have been identified as containing asbestos and will need to beworked on. The inspection that led to the discovery of the ceiling asbestos was spurred on by the March discovery of asbestos which caused the district attorney's office to close for half a day.
Asbestos was found on a ceiling tile on March 31, which led to the shutting down of the DA's office for the afternoon. It was believed that the asbestos had fallen from piping insulation.
The ceiling tiles themselves don't contain the cancer-causing material but some pipes in the building's infrastructure do have asbestos insulation around them. One of the goals of the abatement project is to cover up these pipes.
Cory Wiegel, the county's building and grounds department director, stressed that the asbestos in its current condition does not pose a health risk to anyone who works at or visits the courthouse. He said employees have performed work inside the ceiling countless times in the past 40 years with no health problems.
However, he said the county does want to ensure the safety of its employees by hiring certified contractors to remove the asbestos. The start date for the project has yet to be decided, but Wiegel said the work will likely take place over the weekend when the courthouse is closed.
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