Asbestos discovered at Tauranga Historic Village

Asbestos has been found at Tauranga Historic Village with one building will be demolished.

Tauranga City Council will be carrying out removal works from today.

The works, which are expected to take around two weeks, follow a survey of the village that found a number of instances of asbestos, the majority of which are low-risk. This means the asbestos is currently in a stable condition, and doesn't pose a health risk unless disturbed.

Five areas have been identified as medium risk, which means there has been some minor damage and the asbestos should be removed. Most of the medium-risk asbestos is in small parts of the buildings such as external baseboards and soffits. These areas will be removed by specialised contractors.

The workshop and storage building that was closed in September last year after testing positive for asbestos fibres has been identified as a high-risk area. The building, which also has structural and weather-tightness issues, will be demolished from next Monday, March 7.

The building was constructed in the 1980s from recycled material as a workshop and storage area. It is not classified as historic and has no noteworthy features.

The village will remain open as usual during the asbestos removal works and building demolition. A full health and safety management plan will be in place during these works.