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Guide

Massachusetts Asbestos & Demolition Notifications

Two state agencies, two filings, one ten-working-day clock. This guide states the notifications MassDEP and the Department of Labor Standards require before asbestos or construction/demolition work begins in Massachusetts, who owes the asbestos survey, and where filings can be looked up (MassDEP). Each rule links to the agency page it comes from. Scope: Massachusetts statewide.

The ten-working-day clock

  • Ten working days — excluding weekends and holidays — before work starts, MassDEP requires an Asbestos Notification for any project involving asbestos abatement, removal or disposal. — MassDEP
  • On the same ten-working-day deadline, MassDEP requires a Construction/Demolition Notification for any construction or demolition project, except in a residential building with fewer than 20 units. — MassDEP
  • The exception, stated as the single line it is: a residential building with fewer than 20 units is excepted from the Construction/Demolition Notification. Whether a given building meets that line is a question for MassDEP, not for this page. — MassDEP
  • The governing regulation is the MassDEP Asbestos Regulation, 310 CMR 7.15. — MassDEP
  • In addition to 310 CMR 7.15, the Department of Labor Standards sets notification requirements and work practice standards at 454 CMR 28.00. — MassDEP
  • Both MassDEP and the Department of Labor Standards require notification ten working days before work begins involving removal or disturbance of asbestos-containing material. Two agencies, two filings. — MassDEP

Who owes the asbestos survey, and what the report must contain

  • Under 310 CMR 7.15, before any demolition or renovation the owner or operator of the facility must engage a state-certified asbestos inspector to inspect the area where the work will occur, identify the presence, location and quantity of asbestos-containing material, and produce a written asbestos survey report. — 310 CMR 7.15, via MassDEP
  • The obligation sits on the owner/operator, not on the demolition contractor. — 310 CMR 7.15, via MassDEP
  • The survey is required regardless of the age of the building. A letter from the property owner or manager is not a substitute. — 310 CMR 7.15, via MassDEP

Where to look up filings

MassDEP publishes an Asbestos Project Lookup, searchable by community, project ID, dates and location address. — MassDEP

Questions to ask, and whom to ask

  • Does this project need a Construction/Demolition Notification, or does the under-20-unit residential exception apply? — ask MassDEP (MassDEP)
  • Has an Asbestos Notification been filed with MassDEP, and a separate notification with the Department of Labor Standards under 454 CMR 28.00? — ask MassDEP and the Department of Labor Standards (MassDEP)
  • Has a state-certified asbestos inspector produced the written survey report for the area where the work will occur? — ask the building owner or operator, who owes it under 310 CMR 7.15 (MassDEP)
  • Does the filing appear in the Asbestos Project Lookup? — check with MassDEP (MassDEP)

Any scope of work that requires a state license is performed by licensed specialists that D. Clancy & Sons coordinates as part of the project.

Sources

  1. MassDEP — Asbestos, Construction & Demolition Notifications
  2. MassDEP — BWP AQ 04 / ANF-001 Asbestos Removal Notification Instructions

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