Due to a national power shortage, New Zealand has decided to reopen the New Plymouth Power Station, despite the fact that it was closed last year due to the presence of asbestos. Now, employees will have to wear protective suits all day long until all traces of the dangerous mineral are removed.

According to an article in The Dominion Post, the individuals who will be running the plant will have to wear the same protective gear as those who’ve been working to rid the plant of asbestos. That includes full head-to-toe overalls, respirators, and gloves.

There are also full “wash-down decontamination” processes for all staff leaving the asbestos areas and traveling into non-contaminated areas. All will be made to shower at the end of the day before going home to their families and none of the protective clothing will leave the plant.

“Some Contact staff are already working in the containment area as part of the asbestos removal project, and every person involved in recommissioning and operating this unit will have the same level of protection as those involved in the asbestos removal program,” said David Baldwin, chief executive officer of New Zealand’s Contact Energy.

Currently, 60 contractors are involved in asbestos removal and another 15 will be running the power station on a daily basis.

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 29th, 2008 at 9:56 am and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.