Norm Atkinson feels like he is living with a time bomb ticking away in his Nowra home.
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Mr Atkinson fears his home is full of asbestos dust, has thousands of chunks of the dangerous matter under the property, and he also has lead paint issues.
He is a Department of Family and Community Services (FACS) public housing tenant and he does not want to place his health at risk.
One of the first things Mr Atkinson points to, inside the home, is the picture rails which he says are asbestos boards.
“You can see the asbestos dust on my finger,” he said after touching the rail.
“Run your finger along the rail and you will also feel that dust.”
He notified the department about the asbestos issues a year ago.
“Six months ago I went back to see them and they did an asbestos audit and they are just waiting for maintenance to get a quote and seem to be putting it off,” he said.
He said it was frustrating because his health is being put at risk.
All he wants is to move into a house where his health is not being put at risk.
I just don’t feel safe and my lungs are already bad.
- Norm Atkinson
“I just don’t feel safe and my lungs are already bad,” he said.
He has emphysema, asthma and a cystic related condition.
“They (his doctors) say I have also picked up some sort of fungus,” he said.
He said asbestos was in his bathroom and dining room.
“That is asbestos, this is asbestos,” he points out while walking around his home.
He has been trying to get the maintenance team to fill the numerous gaps in the walls in for a while.
Underneath the property more asbestos, according to Mr Atkinson, can be found.
“There are chips all under the house – there are thousands of chunks under there,” he said
He has tried to cover and remove the chunks up himself.
When he has removed the asbestos he wore a mask and protective clothing.
“I think it’s affecting me and my dog Simba because there is so much under there. Simba has bad lungs now,” he said.
The chipping lead paint around the windows also worries him.
More work is being done to improve and maintain public housing.
- Department of Community and Family Services
“They (the department) had the paint tested and the test showed it was lead paint and they said they would just cover it up,” Mr Atkinson said.
Mr Atkinson said he was told they could not strip the paint back as the lead then contaminates the soil.
He said he first started to raise his concerns about the paint five years ago.
“They never came back and the paint is just getting worse,” he said.
Shortly after the South Coast Register visited, a department representative came to Mr Atkinson’s home on Wednesday, February 21 and he expected another visit on Thursday, February 22.
A FACS spokesperson said the situation was being investigated.
The Department of Family and Community Services (FACS) has arranged for contractors to attend the property and conduct an assessment in response to the concerns raised by the tenant,” the spokesperson said.
“Any necessary works will be undertaken by the contractors and there are strict requirements for dealing with asbestos in accord with NSW SafeWork practice.
“All FACS contractors must abide by SafeWork NSW regulations when they handle or move asbestos. “
Mr Atkinson also questioned FACS’s accelerated works program.
“The accelerated works program is when they come in and do as much maintenance as they can. It’s fast-tracked and done as cheap as they can by the sounds of it,” he said.
He said a section of concrete which is a trip hazard was ‘fixed’ by having blue metal spread around it.
The FACS spokesperson said they took maintenance seriously.
“More work is being done to improve and maintain public housing,” the spokesperson said.
“FACS contractors do around 700,000 maintenance jobs each year right across New South Wales and this must be done satisfactorily to ensure the maintenance concern is addressed.
“Tenants are requested to report any maintenance issues through the maintenance line to the contractors on 1800 422 322, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”