The National Asbestos Exposure Register (NAER) captures details of exposure, including where and when the potential exposure occurred, and details of any diagnosis of asbestos-related disease. The register provides the agency with a statistical analysis of potential or actual exposure events across Australia and allows the agency to remain informed about potential risks which are identified through registration trends. This report provides a snapshot of registrations from 1 July 2016 to 30 June 2017.
The data provided by registrants to the NAER allows the agency to analyse trends and themes in potential asbestos exposure based on age, gender, location and type of potential exposure, frequency of potential exposure, when potential exposure first occurred and the types of jobs or industries where the greatest potential risk may be. If people have been diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease it also allows the agency to estimate the time between the first exposure and when the disease was diagnosed.
Analysis of data in the NAER is based on information limited to the NAER and is general in nature. The registrations do not record confirmed exposure but where someone believes they have been exposed to asbestos fibres. This provides a view of perceived risk and general awareness can be inferred from what is recorded.
Registrations
Since its inception in June 2013, there have been 5776 registrations. There were 65 registrations in June 2013. There were 1045 registrations in the 2013–2014 financial year, 1369 in the 2014–2015 financial year, 1528 in the 2015–2016 financial year and 1770 in the 2016–2017 financial years.
NSW, ACT and WA had a high representation in the 2016–2017 financial year relative to their populations. For NSW, this is attributed to the ongoing issue of loose-fill asbestos in NSW homes; in WA it is attributed to a large number of registrations relating to workplace exposures where are significant proportion (almost 49 per cent) were referred to the NAER by employers.
Interestingly there has been a significant reduction (greater than 55 per cent) of registrants from the ACT compared to the last financial year. This is due to a significant fall in registrations relating to loose-fill asbestos insulation (‘Mr Fluffy’) exposure.
| LOCATION | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ACT | NSW | NT | Qld | SA | Tas | Vic | WA | Total |
| 86 | 478 | 61 | 279 | 122 | 92 | 161 | 491 | 1770 |
| 4.86% | 27.01% | 3.45% | 15.76% | 6.89% | 5.20% | 9.10% | 27.74% | |
Exposure type and gender
The ratio of occupational exposure to non-occupational exposure was 70 per cent to 30 per cent for the 2016–2017 financial year. This is consistent with the long-term average of 70 per cent occupational to 30 per cent non-occupational.
The ratio of male to female exposure was approximately 77 per cent to 23 per cent for the financial year. This is an increase of approximately 8 percentage points in male representation as compared to the previous financial year (69 per cent male to 31 per cent female). The long-term average however, is approximately 74 per cent male to 26 per cent female. The higher than average proportion of male registrations was in all jurisdiction except WA where the proportion dropped by just over 2 per cent. This is possibly due to an increase in the reporting of occupational exposures which are generally in male-dominated jobs.
Non-occupational exposure for men is approximately 20 per cent compared to approximately 80 per cent for occupational exposure. Occupational exposure is slightly higher than for the same period last financial year when the ratio was approximately 23 per cent to 77 per cent. Non-occupational to occupational exposure for women was 65 per cent to 35 per cent in the 2016–2017 financial year compared to 64 per cent to 36 per cent in the previous financial year.
Almost 18 per cent of male respondents were in electrical trades and just over 21 per cent were in building and construction which is a significant increase over the previous financial year. A further 7 per cent were in the mining sector. Of the 40 per cent of male respondents who answered ‘other’ to their occupational activity, significant proportions were in building and construction or trades related activities.
Almost 76 per cent of female respondents answered ‘other’ to their occupational activity; however most of these did not appear to be in occupations with a direct relationship to working with asbestos as many were in education or administrative positions.
Age at exposure and frequency
Just over 70 per cent of reported first exposures occurred before the age of 40 with just under 22 per cent occurring before the age of 20. Of these, approximately 78 per cent were non-occupational exposures. Occupational exposures for the other age groups are significantly higher.
In comparison with the 2015–16 financial year, the once-only frequency has increased significantly (5 percentage points or more) for all age groups and decreased significantly for the greater than five year frequency for all age groups excepting the over 60s. Variations for the other exposure frequencies in the order of 5 percentage points or more are a drop in reporting of exposures of greater than two years to five years for the 40–49 age range, increases in the greater than six months to two years for the under 20 and 30–39 age ranges and zero to six months months for the 40–49 age range. This can possibly be attributed to an increase in the proportion of occupational to non-occupational exposures of just over 5 percentage points compared to the 2015–16 financial year.
| Exposure Type | ||
|---|---|---|
| Age | Non-Occupational | Occupational |
| <20 | 44.41% | 55.59% |
| 20-29 | 15.75% | 84.25% |
| 30-39 | 29.85% | 70.15% |
| 40-49 | 32.96% | 67.04% |
| 50-59 | 32.35% | 67.65% |
| 60+ | 53.13% | 46.88% |
| Total | 30.23% | 69.77% |
| Exposure Type | ||
|---|---|---|
| Frequency | Non-Occupational | Occupational |
| <5 years | 33.89% | 66.11% |
| >2 years to 5 years | 33.93% | 66.07% |
| >6months to 2 years | 23.26% | 76.74% |
| 0 to 6 months | 34.16% | 65.84% |
| Once only | 24.12% | 75.88% |
| Total | 30.23% | 69.77% |
Trends
At 77 per cent to 23 per cent for male to female registrations respectively, the reporting gap has increased compared to the previous financial year. This is reflected by a large number of registrations from male dominated industries such as electrician, plumber and building/construction.
Interestingly, reports of exposure in Qld increased significantly from 177 in 2015–16 to 279 in 2016–17 (approximately 63 per cent). This is possibly due to an almost 9 per cent increase in registrations encouraged by the employer. WA also recorded a significant increase in the number of registrants. Analysis of the responses has revealed large numbers of registrations referring to potential exposure due to the Roe 8 road extensions, school asbestos exposure incidents and employer-initiated registrations. (See Table 1, page 18.)
The occupational to non-occupational ratio has widened at 70 per cent to 30 per cent respectively; compared with approximately 64 per cent to 36 per cent in the previous financial year. This reflects a high incidence of reporting driven by employer referrals, which represent 31 per cent of all registrations compared to 27 per cent in the previous financial year.
Workplace exposure reported by registrants of less than 20 years of age was significantly up compared to the previous year as it was for the 20 to 49 age ranges. There are no clear reasons for this increase.
During this reporting period 40 registrants indicated they had been diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease. Some of them reported having been diagnosed with more than one disease. In 80 per cent of cases it was reported the disease was the result of workplace activity. Pleural plaques was the most reported disease.
Factors influencing registration numbers
There have been significant fluctuations from one month to another in the number of registrations on the NAER. Influencing factors include point in time media reports on asbestos issues such as:
- government funded loose-fill asbestos inspection programs
- reports of illegal dumping
- reports of import of illegal building products
- reports of incidents in schools or hospitals
- large numbers of employer or union initiated registrations.
The NAER into the future
Media focus on asbestos issues appears to impact reporting patterns on the NAER. Issues during the 2016–17 financial year have included loose-fill asbestos in residences in both the ACT and NSW as well as reports which appear in the media from time to time about the existence of asbestos-containing materials in schools and hospitals. This indicates a growing concern amongst community members about the risks they may be incurring in settings other than their workplaces.
This is likely to become more apparent with the increasing trend in DIY activities and major home renovations. The agency has received a number of enquiries from concerned members of the public about neighbourhood renovation activities. This also reflects growing awareness amongst members of the public that there are risks in the residential setting of asbestos fibres becoming airborne and posing a risk to the community.
With average monthly registrations of 148 per month in the 2016–2017 financial year, some trends are now beginning to emerge. Despite variations from month to month and year to year, it is clear that the majority of male registrations are work related, while the majority of female registrations are not directly related to their work. There seems to be a growing concern among employers to inform employees of the existence of the NAER and to encourage them to register if they believe they have been exposed. It is hoped that the NAER will continue to be an avenue by which community members can express their concerns about asbestos exposure and to inform the agency of how and where they believe their exposure occurred.
Analysis of the data collected in the NAER will continue to build on the statistical base which is being developed and support the agency to develop an evidence base which is vital for the implementation of
the National Strategic Plan. The NAER is an important component of the work of the agency and continues to complement the other sources of information collected by the agency through other research which will help to address the issue of asbestos and its risks to the Australian community into the future.
