Document Z4R3Zg0ME83r7w5N0aJJK7Gz8

June 28, 1982 American Teieo^o^e a~c Telegraph Compary 1776 On the GreeMorristown N J G7&6T, Mr. Alfred Algeria New Jersey Bell - Business I & M 1500 Jefferson Street, Bldg. 703 Hoboken, NJ Dear Mr. Algeria: Thank you for your letter regarding my recent article in telephony magazine. At the present time I am unable to provide you with specific Bell System Practices dealing with asbestos hazards thay may be encountered in the course of an installation or maintenance assignment. Stand ardized methods and procedures relative to asbestos are currently under development at AT&T. While actual practices are not completed, much information on the subject has been transmitted to the Operating Telephone Companies in the form of System Letters and general guide lines . Asbestos presents some problems that are difficult to solve on a uniform, standard procedure basis: - It is almost impossible to predict in advance which buildings contain asbestos insulation - Many materials that contain no asbestos look just like those that do - Positive identification requires laboratory analysis of a bulk sample Fortunately, in most of the typical situations encountered by I & M forces, the presence of asbestos does not necessarily mean a health hazard. The findings from our industrial hygiene, surveys have shown that there is virtually no significant exposure when the wire and cable can be placed without knocking the asbestos insulation material CONFIDENTIAL 003980 2- - off of beams and pipes. When it is necessary to place support clamps on asbestos-covered beams, a small spray bottle of water can be used to wet the material, which then prevents fibers from becoming airborne. If you should have questions or concerns about specific work sites where you think asbestos may be present, you should refer those questions through normal supervisory channels to the New Jersey Bell Safety Staff. The Safety Staff is both trained and equipped to collect samples and evaluate the work environment for asbestos related hazards. In the absence of Bell System Practices, I hope I have provided you with some useful information regarding your concerns for potential exposure to asbestos fibers. Very truly yours, James M. Degen District Manager - Occupational and Environmental Safety Copy to A. B. Goetze, New Jersey Bell Safety Coordinator CONFIDENTIAL 003981