THE EAF CONFERENCE: 30 NOVEMBER & 1 DECEMBER 2023
Venue: Hotel Marriott Grand Place, Brussels. Address: Rue Auguste Orts, Grand Place 3-7, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium. Phone number: 0032-2-516 9090.
Getting there: The four-star hotel/conference venue is situated in the historical heart of Brussels, 30 minutes by taxi from Brussels Airport and only 11 minutes by taxi from the convenient Eurostar terminal at the Brussels Midi (‘Zuid’) station. The subway/metro station Bourse is located underground, some fifty meters from the hotel. Also nearby are spacious parking garages at Paul Devauxstraat 8 (BePark Bourse) and 13, Bisschopsstraat 1 (Parking Brucity) and Rue des Augustins 14-16 (Parking De Brouckère). There are also many other hotels within easy walking distance.
Booking your Hotel
To book your hotel stay at the conference rate, please click here.
The link is only valid until (and including) 30 October 2023.
Prices
(A) Day One (30 November): Excursion and workshops, incl. lunch and transportation: € 350,- ex VAT
(B) Day Two (1 December): Conference, incl. deluxe lunch and drinks reception: € 670,- ex VAT
(C) Day Two (1 December): Conference dinner, three courses: € 75,- ex VAT
NB: only during September 2023, option B comes with a € 70,- Early Bird Reduction!
Registration
Please send an email detailing the first and last name and company name of each person, also including which options (A, B, C) apply for each person, to: yw@europeanasbestosforum.org. If there are any allergies or particular wishes, please add this information too. An invoice will be returned within a week; registration is concluded on receipt of full payment. Speakers and presentations may be subject to change.
See below for the programme. During the conference afternoon sessions on 1 December, you can switch quickly and quietly between the simultaneous presentations through the connecting door, so you can pick and choose from sessions A and B exactly what interests you the most!
| EAF CONFERENCE PROGRAMME 2023, DAY ONE (30 November 2023) | |
| 09.00 – 12.00 | An excursion to the outstanding Museum of Natural Sciences, starting at 09:00 hours sharp in front of the entrance at the Marriott Grand Place Hotel (venue). At the museum, Sean Fitzgerald (FACTS) will give a presentation ‘The science of asbestos: the Good, the Bad and the Ugly’. We will return to attend a presentation and guided tour at approx. 11:30 by Joris Gribnau (Asbestmuseum) of the Asbestos Museum exhibition at the venue. |
| 12:00 – 13:00 | Lunch buffet at the venue |
| 13:00 – 17:00 | Round table workshops and debate interspersed with presentations and valuable insights from different perspectives (e.g first response, exposure risks from asbestos cement rubble, aftermath, communication,etc.). Topic: Asbestos & Dealing with Disasters. Speakers:
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| EAF CONFERENCE PROGRAMME 2023, DAY TWO (1 December 2023) | |
| 08.30 – 09.00 | Registration and refreshments |
| 09.00 – 09.10 | Welcome by Dr. Yvonne Waterman LL.M. FFAAM |
| 09.10 – 09.15 | Introduction of the Chairpersons: Nick Garland and Adam Harding |
| 09.15 – 09.30 | Welcome by Kees Hoppener (Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management) |
| Plenary Session | |
| 09.30 – 10.00 | Opening Speech, by Zuhal Demir (Flemish Minister of Justice and Enforcement, Environment, Energy and Tourism) |
| 10.00 – 10.25 | Issues with ingesting asbestos, by Professor Arthur Frank (Drexel University) |
| 10.25 – 10.50 | Being a mesothelioma survivor, by Heather Von St. James |
| 10.50 – 11.10 | Break and refreshments |
| 11.10 – 11.30 | Asbestos: a global disaster for the future, by professor Jukka Takala (past President of ICOH) |
| 11.30 – 11.35 | Why the European Parliament considers the new Asbestos at Work Directive so important, by Dragoş Pîslaru (MEP and Chair of the EU Committee on Employment & Social Affairs) |
| 11.35 – 12.00 | Keynote Speech: The global relevance of the Asbestos at Work Directive, by Gordana Materljan LLM. (EU Commission DG EMPL) |
| 12.00 – 12.45 | Lunch break, also with exhibitions by Tony Rich (Asbestorama), Eurofins and the Dutch Asbestos Museum |
| Session A | Asbestos & Its Impact on Society |
| 12.45 – 13.05 | At the UK Asbestos Crossroads: The Devil is in the Detail, by Kevin Bampton (British Occupational Hygiene Society – BOHS) |
| 13.05 – 13.25 | To Mars and back: What on earth is good for mesothelioma?, by Professor Steven Kao (Sydney Medical School) |
| 13.25 – 13.45 | Asbestos in Colombia: Challenges in a post-ban scenario, by Guillermo Villamizar and Professor Manuel Saba (University of Cartagena) |
| 13.45 – 14.05 | The importance of asbestos statistics and the latest insights, by Jorge Sirgo (Gnarus Advisors LLC) |
| 14.05 – 14.25 | Break and refreshments |
| 14.25 – 14.45 | Filing EU Citizen Asbestos Claims In United States Courts, by Michael Armitage & Charles Siegel (Waters Kraus & Paul, LLP) |
| 14.45 – 15.05 | It is what it is, by Helen Bone (mesothelioma victim) |
| 15.05 – 15.25 | The Asbestos Museum, the International Asbestos Awareness Foundation and the urgent need to update REACH, by Harry Vonk (BME Opleidingen) |
| 15.25 – 15.45 | The urgency of global collaborations to eliminate ARD’s, by Kim Brislane (ADDRI) |
| 15.45 – 16.00 | Break and refreshments |
| Session B | Asbestos & Professional Perspectives |
| 12.45 – 13.05 | New insights on defining asbestos and asbestiform minerals, by Sean Fitzgerald (FACTS) |
| 13.05 – 13.25 | Using Artificial Intelligence to improve the ergonomics of asbestos analysis, by Thomas Muller (Eurofins) |
| 13.25 – 13.45 | Does your reinforced concrete contain asbestos? by Wayne Bagnall MBE (Wayne Bagnall Consulting) |
| 13.45 – 14.05 | Synergy between AI, asbestos roof inspections and local governance, by Stefan Kempeneers (Interleuven) |
| 14.05 – 14.25 | Break and refreshments |
| 14.25 – 14.45 | Removing asbestos between rockets and granades, by Mr. To Be Announced |
| 14.45 – 15.05 | Update on the Flanders asbestos policy, by Sven de Mulder (OVAM) |
| 15.05 – 15.25 | The global case to move away from landfill and towards denaturation, by Graham Gould (Thermal Recycling) |
| 15.25 – 15.45 | Asbestos denaturation by water – and start with eradication, by Inez Postema (Asbeter Holding B.V) |
| 15.45 – 16.00 | Break and refreshments |
| Plenary Session | |
| 16.00 – 16.30 | Plenary session: all the speakers from sessions A & B for questions and debate |
| 16.30 – 16.40 | EAF Special Recognition Award |
| 16.40 – 16.55 | Special feature |
| 16.55 – 17.00 | Concluding speech |
| Photo Session | |
| 17.00 – 17.15 | Group photos of speakers and audience |
| 17.15 – 18.15 | Convivial closing drinks for networking |
| 18.15 – 21.00 | Conference dinner (optional) |
NB: Titles and speakers may be subject to change