More Vic asbestos tests despite clearance

Victorian health officials have identified 20 more sites to be tested for asbestos contamination in Melbourne's west.

More properties near an old asbestos factory will be tested for the fibre despite other homes in the area being cleared.

The Environment Protection Authority found no detectable levels of asbestos in the soil or living areas of six homes near the disused factory in Sunshine North.

The substance was found in five roofs but it was not breathable and did not pose a health risk to homeowners unless it was disturbed, the EPA said.

Victoria's acting chief health officer, Michael Ackland, said the results were reassuring but a further 20 sites, including homes and public buildings, would be tested.

Professor Ackland said the staged testing was being done after an advisory group wanted more information on whether asbestos in roof spaces posed a health risk.

The state government ordered widespread testing near the factory after a spike in the number of mesothelioma cases.

Asbestos Wise chief executive Michael Rae said the initial test results would go some way to easing community anxiety.

"The issue still remains, though, for those who lived in the vicinity in the past when there was clearly a major problem associated with the mismanagement of this highly toxic substance," he said.

Tests of the factory site this month found evidence of illegal asbestos dumping and residual fibres left from when the factory was operating.

There were 16 cases of mesothelioma within a 2km radius of the site from 2001 to 2013.

"What we're dealing with is a historical problem where kids were playing in asbestos and bringing it home and for those living downwind of the site when it was mismanaged," Mr Rae said.

The Department of Health said none of these 16 cases relate to recent exposure to asbestos and were most likely from before the factory closed in the 1980s.


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