A proposed amendment to the town’s garbage regulations would require homeowners and contractors to complete an asbestos inspection before disturbing materials for renovation and demolition projects.

The amendment would make it a requirement for dumpster companies to obtain the inspection from a homeowner or contractor before they can place a dumpster on a lot, said Director of Public Health Christopher Michaud, who proposed the change at a Board of Health meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 11.

“It would be a better way of assuring that our solid waste haulers are not hauling materials that have been untested,” Michaud said.

Building a new home or renting a dumpster to clean-out a basement wouldn’t require an inspection, and in no situation would homeowners be required to obtain a local dumpster permit.

Costs for the inspection would vary, and could cost from just under $1,000 to “north of that,” Michaud said, adding that the cost is determined by the “complexity of the structure.”

Asbestos, which can cause cancer if inhaled, can be found in a variety of materials and locations, including under kitchen sinks, in floor tiles, drywall and pipes, and in old and new homes alike.

“With asbestos exposure, you don’t know about the problem until decades later,” Michaud said. “It’s very, very sad.”

While asbestos is used less in homes and building materials now than decades ago, it can still be found in new buildings built within the past few years.

“We’ve seen asbestos in houses built in the 1980s [and] as recently as about two weeks ago,” Michaud said.

The proposed amendment would be a “significant opportunity” to protect the public from the harmful effects of asbestos exposure, he said.

“This is a very, very important issue for the safety of our residents in Dartmouth, and just in general for public health in Dartmouth,” said Board of Health Chair Michelle Keith.

Michaud will first bring a draft of the amended regulations to town counsel then go before the Board of Health with a finished draft for approval.