The use of HC refrigerant has been a hot topic for some time, but a recent court case has brought it more fully into the spotlight. The case involved a $3,000 fine and $690 in costs for a mechanic who was careless about the use of HC refrigerant. That carelessness resulted in an explosion that destroyed a customer’s car, many of their belongings, and severely damaged their home.
In and around the now-condemned town site of Wittenoom, the “blue ghosts” of the past still haunt the area. The blue asbestos that was mined there for over 30 years continues to kill people through the insidiousness of mesothelioma. The children of the miners are dying, now, from hugging their fathers when they came home from a long day of mining, covered with dust that no one realized was so deadly. The products of the mine were left where they were dumped when the mine was abandoned, exposing the asbestos to the elements, and leaving the local population at risk.
