Little Manly Beach: Asbestos fragments found in soil at popular park
Archaeologists investigating the discovery of historical human remains have stumbled across potentially dangerous asbestos at popular Sydney beach ahead of Christmas.
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Asbestos has been found in the soil on a reserve at a Sydney beach.
Fragments of the potentially dangerous material were unearthed at the park behind Little Manly Cove — a popular family swimming and picnic spot.
The asbestos was discovered this week by archaeologists who had been doing follow up investigations into the discovery of historical human remains at the reserve in July.
Construction workers, building a new sea wall at the harbourside beach, discovered the bones of an Aboriginal person while excavating the site.
When archaeologists — under the supervision of the Aboriginal Heritage Office, Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council and Heritage NSW — recently began “wet sieving” a stockpile of soil, created back in July, to look for further ancestral remains, the asbestos fragments were found.
The material was described as pieces of bonded asbestos, likely to have come from a historical activity or an old structure on the site that used to be privately owned.
Northern Beaches Council has brought in specialist environmental contactors and an occupational hygienist to oversee the sieving work and manage the asbestos removal.
The soil sieving work, in a fenced off secure area behind the recently completed seawall, was still underway on Friday.
Once the stockpile has been sieved, all sieved material and asbestos fragments will be removed and disposed at an authorised collection facility.
When asbestos fibres are bonded to another material, such as fibro sheeting and drainage pipes, by cement or resin, it is called “bonded asbestos”.
It is safe unless damaged, sawn, drilled, sanded, crushed or is excessively weathered.
It is understood that it is unlikely the original source of the material found at Little Manly will be identified.
“The reserve will reopen once the stockpile sieving is complete and a clearance has been obtained from the occupational hygienist,” the council said.
“It is anticipated that this will be in early 2023.”
The council is continuing to work closely with the land council and Heritage NSW as well as archaeological consultants, environmental consultants and SafeWork NSW in relation to the culturally sensitive work to recover further human remains.
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