A form of loose asbestos insulation used in the Australian capital of Canberra, Mr. Fluffy has proved much more menacing than its name would suggest. Fear of Mr. Fluffy reemerged in 2013 after a house that had undergone asbestos removal procedures was found to still contain the deadly insulation, according to The Guardian. Millions were spent on the original abatement efforts, and now a second round of removal efforts is underway.
The Asbestos Taskforce is three-quarters complete with the current demolition program, razing more than 800 homes so far in an effort to rid the area of Mr. Fluffy once and for all. The net cost of the project was revised down to $307 million in the territory’s latest budget, excluding interest, according to The Canberra Times. The news source reports the cost of the house demolitions has fallen over time as the process is refined.
“What we’ve seen as the program has unfolded that the overall cost of the demolitions has decreased and that reflects not only the way we’ve approached the market in terms of the contracting, the benefits of scale that came from taking a program of 900 houses to the market for demolition, it also reflects the extent to which we have been able to develop and test and spread good practice amongst the contractors as the program has unfolded,” program director Andrew Kefford said.
Once demolished, the homes go up for auction. Some cite not removing the driveways and gardens of the demolished homes as the reason more than 80 failed to sell at auction. Kefford stressed those components did not need to be demolished to properly abate the asbestos risk, and that many see buying into an already established neighborhood with established gardens as a plus.
The 360 Fluffy blocks that have sold so far have gone for a total of $245 million and cost the government $664 million to acquire.
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