What Buildings Are Most Likely to Have Asbestos in New Orleans?
In New Orleans, Louisiana, buildings constructed before 1980 carry the highest risk of containing asbestos, particularly pier-and-beam shotgun houses, camelback doubles, and pre-war commercial structures that make up the majority of the city’s older neighborhoods. The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) requires property owners and contractors to file Form AAC-2, the asbestos pre-demolition notification form, at least 10 working days before demolition begins on any structure containing Regulated Asbestos-Containing Materials (RACM). Big Easy Demolition, licensed by the Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors (LSLBC) and serving Orleans Parish and the surrounding parishes, manages LDEQ notification, licensed abatement coordination, and full-structure demolition so property owners do not have to navigate the regulatory process alone. Any pre-1980 building in New Orleans should be surveyed for asbestos before any demolition or major renovation work begins, regardless of the visible condition of the structure.
Last Updated: June 2026
Pre-1980 buildings in New Orleans, Louisiana are the primary risk category for asbestos-containing materials, and the City of New Orleans Department of Safety and Permits requires demolition permit applicants to comply with LDEQ Form AAC-2 notification rules before any structure is torn down. Big Easy Demolition handles residential demolition and commercial demolition across Orleans Parish, Jefferson Parish, and the surrounding metro area, including asbestos pre-notification coordination with the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) on every project where RACM is suspected or confirmed. The dense inventory of pre-1960 pier-and-beam homes in neighborhoods like Mid-City, Uptown, Treme, Marigny, and Bywater makes asbestos identification a standard step in nearly every demolition project the company takes on in the New Orleans area.
What Types of Buildings in New Orleans Are Most at Risk for Asbestos?
Any structure built before 1980 in New Orleans, Louisiana carries a meaningful probability of containing asbestos in one or more building components, and the risk is highest in pre-1960 pier-and-beam residential construction that dominates the older neighborhoods of Orleans Parish. The city’s distinctive housing stock, including shotgun singles, shotgun doubles, camelback structures, and Victorian-era cottages, was built during the same decades when asbestos use was at its peak in American construction.
Shotgun doubles and camelbacks in the Bywater, Seventh Ward, Ninth Ward, and Treme neighborhoods were largely constructed between 1890 and 1950. These structures commonly contain asbestos pipe insulation on supply lines running beneath the pier-and-beam floor system, 9×9 vinyl asbestos tile (VAT) on interior floors, and asbestos-containing transite board or siding on exterior surfaces. The older the structure, the more building systems are likely to have incorporated asbestos at the time of original construction.
Pre-World War II commercial buildings in the Central Business District and along major corridors like Magazine Street, Claiborne Avenue, and St. Claude Avenue represent the second-highest risk category. These structures frequently contain asbestos in pipe insulation, boiler room components, fireproofing spray applied to structural steel, and acoustic ceiling tiles. Many were constructed or substantially renovated between 1930 and 1970, when asbestos-containing materials were the industry standard for thermal and acoustic insulation.
Post-Katrina structures present a specific and often overlooked risk. After Hurricane Katrina (2005) damaged tens of thousands of Orleans Parish homes, some properties were repaired or partially renovated without completing a full asbestos survey first. Materials disturbed during emergency repairs may have been reenclosed inside walls or floor systems, leaving asbestos-containing materials in place but out of sight. Any structure that sustained flood damage during Katrina or Hurricane Ida (2021) and was subsequently repaired should be treated as a candidate for a pre-demolition asbestos survey regardless of its apparent renovation status.