City of Buffalo, New York Charges $1000 Fee/ Every Asbestos Abatement Notification to Offset $7 Million in Costs

The City of Buffalo has initiated a $1000 fee for every Asbestos notification it sends out to local residents who have found Asbestos around their properties/buildings/homes and that will need to undergo asbestos abatement services. According to James Comerford, Buffalo City Chief of Inspections, these funds gathered will be used to limit the number of dangerous structures that are contaminated of Asbestos and the total number of abatements that the company will have to perform. Conducting business around asbestos demolition sites is made almost impossible thanks to safety issues the City warns, and thus this step is necessary. Senator William Stachowski however has come up with a legislation that could eliminate the high $1000 Asbestos abatement fee. It is a law that people must inform the City of Buffalo before removing any asbestos-containing materials, or getting the services of an Asbestos abatement company on their buildings/structures. The image on the left is of a building being demolished in Niagara Falls, Buffalo, New York due ot threat of Asbestos containing materials.

Buffalo is one of the oldest and poorest cities in the state of New York and contains many old buildings/structures that pose danger to the surrounding communities. Infact, currently about 7000 buildings need to be demolished due to Asbestos containing materials and fear of environmental exposure to Asbestos. This means the city will need to come up with $7 million in building demolition fees, that it cannot afford. Thus, sending out $1000 bills to these 7000 buildings could help raise enough money to cover the expenses.

About the City of Buffalo, New York

Buffalo was founded in 1789 and became a very popular city after the building of the of the Erie Canal which is an artificial waterway connecting the Hudson river at Albany with Lake Erie at Buffalo. In the early 1900s, Buffalo became home to one of the largest steel factories in the country as well as grain milling centers. Since Asbestos is widely used in steel factories for its insulating properties, resistance to heat & fire and its strength, thousands of workers in these factories have been exposed to Asbestos. Infact, it is estimated that 2626 have died from Asbestos related diseases in New York, since 1979.