Naturally Occurring Asbestos Air Monitoring (NOA)

What Areas are Affected by Naturally Occurring Asbestos in NSW?

Major deposits of naturally occurring asbestos in NSW include slip fibre and cross-fibre accumulations at Woodsreef and Baryulgil Chrysotile Asbestos deposits. Tremolite is known to be associated with Ordovician Byng Volcanics, with the Ordovician to Early Silurian Rockley Volcanics, the Fifield Alaskan ultramafic complexes west of Dubbo and is also associated with amphibolites in the Curnamona Geological region around Broken Hill. Additional new geological locations have recently been located around the Parkes region.

Based on the assessment where known locations of naturally occurring asbestos have been identified and probable sites where asbestos indicator minerals and/or textures have been identified, 6,694,479,626 km2 or about 0.83% of NSW is affected by rocks with significant potential to host naturally occurring asbestos.

The main naturally occurring asbestos areas with potential impacts from disturbing activities are:

• The major serpentinite belts, including the Great Serpentinite Belt in the New England region along with the Coolac Serpentinite in southwest NSW and serpentinites associated with the Gilmore Suture in south central NSW.
• Ordovician to Early Silurian rocks east of Orange.
• Ultramafic complexes in central west NSW including areas near Fifield southwest of Dubbo.

Many areas near these sediments, such as the Great Australian Basin and most sedimentary rocks around Greater Sydney and many parts of NSW, have no potential for naturally occurring asbestos.