The recent discovery of asbestos in the west wing of Aras an Uachtarain and the inability of the President to live in that wing until it has been tackled, serves as a timely reminder of the serious health hazard posed by asbestos to humans.

As many as 3,000 people die from asbestos-related conditions in Britain every year and this figure is set to rise. Most of these worked in areas like construction, shipbuilding, insulation and roof tile manufacture.

But employers in every sector are obliged to establish if there is asbestos in the workplace. Tonnes of asbestos remains to this day in the fabric of many offices and factories.

Buildings most likely to be affected are those built or refurbished between 1950 and 1980. Asbestos can be found as lagging around pipes or boilers. Walls, doors or ceilings are often insulated with it. It can be mixed with cement in roofs, tanks or wall coverings and it is an ingredient in certain decorative plasters.

Other likely places include its use as fire protection in ducts, firebreaks or panels and around steel work. Many buildings still retain corrugated sheets of asbestos as roofing or walls. Gutters, pipes and water tanks can also be made of asbestos.

If it is discovered to be in poor condition employers must ensure that asbestos is repaired, sealed, enclosed or removed. It must be stressed that only specialist contractors should do this work because even a small inhalation of asbestos dust can be detrimental to health. The Health and Safety Authority (HSA), telephone 01 662 0400, can provide a list of recognised contractors. Forbairt, the HSA or specialist firms can also assist in the identification of asbestos in the workplace.

Asbestos in solid form is considered safe. It is asbestos dust or fibre which can kill. So asbestos identified in the workplace does not necessarily have to be removed.

Mr Vincent Wall, a senior inspector with the HSA, says that people can be "over-alarmed" by asbestos. It is only when asbestos products begin to deteriorate that health is endangered.

When asbestos is found to be in good condition, management needs to set up a monitoring system. The locations of asbestos should be recorded on building plans and it is advisable to put up signs where it is found to warn builders of its presence.

But the danger of exposure is by no means restricted to construction workers. Electricians, people installing cables for computers or fire alarms, telecommunication engineers and even window-blind fitters can be at risk. Managers should inform such workers before they begin work of the location or possible location of asbestos.

Moreover, employers should train staff about the dangers of asbestos. Workers have the right to stop work and seek advice if they come across dust or materials which they believe might contain asbestos.

Even minimal exposure like that encountered by electricians or plumbers doing routine repair work could be enough to cause asbestos-related conditions like the chronic lung disease asbestosis, mesothelioma (a malignant tumour caused by asbestos fibre lodging between the lung and the sac which contains the lung) and lung cancer.

Mr Wall says just being exposed to asbestos once could be enough to cause serious problems 15, 30 or 40 years later. "It could be just a once-off exposure. For instance the next door neighbour could have been cutting asbestos 40 years ago." Workers should be told that it is dangerous to drill, cut, sand or disturb asbestos or materials containing asbestos.

When it comes to tackling asbestos, only personnel required to carry out the work should be permitted into the area. Dust must not be raised or allowed to build up. Material should be kept wet.

Protective clothing and a respirator must be worn by all workers. A special vacuum machine should be used to contain the dust during and after the work. Asbestos waste should be doublebagged while wet and marked as asbestos and can only be disposed of at special waste sites.

Power tools should never be used on asbestos products because they raise the fibre. Materials should not be broken into smaller pieces. The employer should arrange for work clothing to be cleaned at a specialist cleaner employees should never be allowed to take their work clothes home.

Employees should have separate lockers for personal and work clothes and should be trained to always wash their hands and face before eating, drinking or smoking.