Hundreds of properties in a 100-year-old Dundee housing estate may contain potentially-harmful asbestos, it has been revealed.
Some of those living in Dundee’s Logie scheme have been decanted in recent months while work is carried out by a council-hired company to safely remove the material.
It is now banned in the UK and poses very little risk if it remains intact but it can cause forms of lung cancer from exposure if disturbed.
Dundee City Council previously sold off a number of the properties and say they have no responsibility to inform current owners about the recent discoveries.
Many private owners nearby claim the local authority should have informed them of the asbestos — past exposure of which is estimated to kill around 4,000 people per year.
There are an estimated 250 council-built apartment houses in the Logie scheme made up of three and four bedrooms units.
Completed in 1920, the estate was the first public housing scheme built in Scotland after the First World War.
It also had one of the first district heating schemes in Europe which supplied central heating and hot water to each house.
One apartment owner on Ashbank Road said he was shocked that the council has not made an effort to inform those living in similar privately-owned properties in the scheme.
He said: “Given the number of flats, and therefore people potentially affected, not informing people could lead to thousands of asbestos-related health problems.
“I still find it hard to believe they can claim they are not responsible for removing the asbestos they installed in the first place.”
Work on several properties has been carried out all week by Rhodar, a leading company in asbestos removal, demolition and remediation services.
Another homeowner who shares an apartment block with council tenants on Ashbank Road said she had been informed of the potential problem in March.
She said: “I was told by the council there was likely asbestos in my home so was decanted while a specialist team came in to remove it.
“It is definitely concerning.
“I was recently diagnosed with [lung disease] Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). I’m not saying that was caused by the asbestos but I just don’t know.”
Dundee City Council did not answer when asked how many of its properties are being treated for asbestos removal and did not respond to the concerns of nearby homeowners.
A spokesperson said: “We would advise anyone in a privately owned property if they have concerns about asbestos in their property they should take their own specialist advice.”
