Cleaned up

Director of education for the Nova Central School District says asbestos discovered in the ground of the construction site of Copper Mountain Academy has been cleaned up.

"They are moving ahead now with site preparation," said Cindy Fleet, director of education.

It was before Christmas when workers identified asbestos in the ground where the new K-12 school is being built in Baie Verte.

Because there was down time, there were some concerns from residents that more asbestos was discovered.

But Ms. Fleet said that's not the case.

"We got a lot of warm, wet weather and everything had to stop. They were unable to move it during that time. They had to wait until the weather turned cold again," she said.

Construction on the $12.6 million school began in the fall. The school will accommodate roughly 350 students.

Ms. Fleet said there are no health concerns regarding the discovery.

"It's not a concern from a health perspective if you indentify it - because we know how to deal with it so it doesn't become a health concern," she said. "If it wasn't addressed, then there would certainly be an issue."

She said government is making sure protocols are followed and that proper experts are monitoring the project.

Ms. Fleet said the discovery of asbestos did delay the project, but not extensively. The school is anticipated to open in September 2011.