Mr Fluffy

Mr Fluffy refers to a widespread asbestos contamination incident that occurred in the suburbs of Canberra, the capital city of Australia. Two companies, referred to collectively as Mr Fluffy (a nickname coined in the 1990s for Asbestosfluf Insulations, and its successor J&H Insulation, the former run by Canberra businessman Dirk Jansen, the latter owned by a relative of his), imported and installed fibrous, loose-fill amphibole asbestos (in most cases brown amosite, though instances of blue crocidolite have been recorded) as an insulation by blowing the product into roof spaces of homes during the 1960s and 1970s. Additionally, the companies are believed to have sold sacks of asbestos fibre direct to homeowners to insulate their own homes, and other operators may have also used the hazardous material trying to copy Jansen's business model.

At the time, there was little knowledge by the public about the dangers of exposure to asbestos. Subsequently, cases of mesothelioma, lung cancer and other asbestos-related diseases have become well publicised. Testing in these homes has revealed the ongoing possibility of exposure to the loose asbestos fibres, with the loose-fill amosite asbestos used by Mr Fluffy especially hazardous due to its lack of a bonding agent causing it to easily migrate to hidden corners and cracks inside a residence.

In 2015 the Government of the Australian Capital Territory released a list of areas affected by Mr Fluffy insulation contamination totaling 1,022 properties. It is believed that up to 30,000 people may have been affected over the years.

A significant number of the houses were developed in the Radburn scheme suburbs, Charnwood, Curtin and Garran, and a small part of Hughes. In 2014, with plans for demolition of houses under the Mr Fluffy asbestos home demolition scheme being developed, it was realised that a significant number of the houses treated with loose asbestos, and thus affected, were in the Radburn areas. This was recognised as having the potential to degrade the remaining legacy of the Radburn scheme.

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