Asbestos Survey in Sittingbourne

Asbestos is a fibrous mineral found mostly in countries like Russia, China and Brazil. It - and its robust heat and fire resistance - has been known to mankind for thousands of years, although until the late 19th century its use was extremely limited. In the late Victorian era, housing production in the UK increased significantly. Developers and manufacturers of building products, looking for ways to attract homebuyers, embraced asbestos for all its aforementioned heat resistance. Large-scale mining commenced and asbestos was used to make everything from oven mitts to roofing shingles, insulation and floor coverings. Early in the 20th century, medical professionals began to raise the alarm about the health effects of asbestos, but their warnings were ignored. It wasn't until nearly a century later - in 1999 - that the UK government finally acted and banned asbestos use in new construction. By then, however, asbestos was already installed in millions of homes.