Emerald
Vol 83, No. 73
Eugene, Oregon 97403
Thursday, January 7, 1982
Asbestos hazard may involve dorms
Threat bothers student
By DANE CLAUSSEN
Of tw EtiwiM
The asbestos hazard in the
east wing of the Science I
building is insignificant com
pared to the potential threat of
asbestos in dormitories, says
Mitchell Anstme, a former board
member of the Residence Hall
Governance Council
Asbestos — a known cause of
cancer — was reported to be
flaking off the large beams sup
porting the Science I building,
where it is used as insulation
Anstine contacted the Emerald
about another possible asbes
tos hazard after reading the
Dec 9 article about the problem
in Science I
Pipes in dorm rooms are
wrapped with asbestos insula
tion and often are located less
than three feet from the beds,
says Anstine, a senior chemistry
major
"In one room, you had to rip
the pipe insulation to open the
window," he says
John Thorpe of the housing
office says there is asbestos in
pipe wrappings but says the
pipes are safe
"The test is whether they (as
bestos surfaces) have been
sealed," he says
"The physical plant did some
rewrapping and refitting to
eliminate possible hazards Our
systems have been checked "
This doesn't mean that "at
any one moment" there isn't a
pipe wrapping torn or asbestos
exposed otherwise, but physical
plant crews fix such hazards as
soon as possible, he says
Fiberglass, an alternative to
asbestos, is unnecessary and
expensive, he says
Broken pipe jackets can be
found in heating tunnels, says
John Kahananui, University
r
Photo by Erich Bo«kelhetd<
Students peruse used books at the new student-run co-op book bazaar.
Book co-op struggling
But profits should improve with time
What began as a an observation about
the University by a transfer student
became a student service and group
fundraiser for the campus American Ad
vertising Federation chapter
The chapter has started a book co-op,
which serves as a medium for students to
sell books to other students at prices the
sellers establish
This is the first time the Federation has
formed a co-op, and it is skeptical about
making a profit this week, says Jessica
Drate, the advertising major who thought
up the idea
She says a major cost that cut into
profits of the co-op, located in the
southwest corner of the EMU cafeteria,
was buying receipt books
"The school I used to go to (University
’ of North Carolina) had a book co-op,”
Drate says, adding she was surprised to
find this one doesn t.
"Here no one had heard of one," she
says. “It's going pretty well considering
it’s the first time "
"We ll keep on doing it." Drate adds,
explaining she believes the effort will be
more successful each term
Any profits will be used to sponsor
teams of students at regional and na
tional advertising competitions, accord
ing to Drate
“They’re an alternative and I'm not
opposed to them," says Jim Williams,
general manager of the University Book
store. "I wish them well, personally," he
says
Students can buy books, sell books,
and collect money for their books that
have been sold today and Friday.
Students whose books don’t sell may
reclaim them Friday
architect, "but I don't know of
any other" asbestos hazards
Staff entering those tunnels
must wear masks, he says
Dormitory pipes are
"adequately protected."
Kahananui says, "I think the
problem is infinitesimal "
Asbestos in dormitories
poses no hazard, agrees Don
Lee, associate director of dor
mitories. He says he knows of
no instances in which ripped
pipe coverings were not
repaired soon
Insulation on ceilings at the
University generally is wood
based materials sealed with la
tex paint. Thorpe says, adding
that fiberglass and other mater
ials are used to replace asbes
tos insulating pipes
The Earl complex probably
has the most potential problems
with asbestos, Anstine says
He says he pointed out po
tential hazards to Thorpe and
did just about everything up to
bringing in the Health Depart
ment" but got little reaction
from Thorpe and other officials
"I was hoping Thorpe would
do something about it,' Anstine
says
Thorpe had known about the
hazards and looked at them with
Anstine but had a "ho hum atti
tude," Anstine says
"We're not ignoring it,"
Thorpe says, explaining that
dorms are checked for various
reasons "several times a year"
and he just "went through" the
Earl building
"I should have ramrodded it
through the Health Depart
ment," Anstine says "Even if
(the pipes) were adequately
wrapped, they are not safe," he
says
Anstine says he did tell the
county health department about
McClure Hall resident Mike Bryce watches TV in the basement of his dormitory. The pipes above his
head are insulated with asbestos.
the hazard and that department
officals were 'shocked by it.”
But George Bressells of the
Environmental Health Division
of the Lane County Health
Department says no reports
have crossed his desk
No other students have com
plained. Thorpe says Anstine
"worries a little bit more about it
than he should ”
But Anstine says his worries
are valid “There's no place for
asbestos to go except up your
lungs,” Anstine says
It should be stressed that as
bestos was used before there
was any idea of its hazards,
Thorpe says
"We didn't even use face
masks" when dealing with it, he
says
Photos by Bob Baker
Grad student Mitchell Anstine points out torn pipe insulation.
Leaking asbestos fibers pose a health hazard in residence halls, he
contends.