english – Legal assessment of asbestos cement pipes in Bavaria
Should pipelines made of asbestos cement be left in the ground and rehabilitated with inliners? In Bavaria? Assessments by a lawyer.
"Undoubtedly, at least at first glance, it seems more popular in terms of environmental policy to advocate the long-term removal of asbestos pipes. On closer inspection, however, it becomes clear that such a lofty wish is at any rate currently still far from reality," writes Victoria von Minnigerode, a lawyer and specialist in administrative law, in an article for the magazine "Der Bayerische Bürgermeister".
The author refers not only to the costs of expansion and subsequent disposal, but also to the fact that municipalities are left completely alone with the task. Von Minnigerode: "In practical terms, therefore, there will be no extensive expansion of AZ pipes in the foreseeable future. Rather, it is to be expected that in numerous cases where financially viable and environmentally friendly alternatives, such as inliner methods, are blocked by the trade supervisory authority, defective pipes will remain in operation."
The lawyer pleads for trade supervisory authorities in Bavaria to take a serious look at alternatives such as inliner methods. "AZ pipes then remain in the ground for the time being, but can no longer pose a danger in the context of sewer maintenance, since they do not come into contact with the water, for example, by pulling in an internal pipe."
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