The Environmental Protection Agency on Monday finalized a ban on chrysotile asbestos, the only type of asbestos still in use in the United States;. This movement has been decades in the making.
Chrysotile asbestos, also known as “white asbestos,” is still imported and processed in the United States for use in diaphragms (including those used in the manufacture of sodium hydroxide and chlorine), seat gaskets, brake blocks, and aftermarket automotive brakes/linings. , and other vehicle friction products. , and other gaskets, the EPA notes.
Exposure to asbestos is known to cause lung cancer, mesothelioma, ovarian cancer, and laryngeal cancer.Asbestos is associated with 40,000 people die each year in the US alone.
“The science is clear that asbestos is a known carcinogen with serious public health implications,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a statement. “President Biden understands that this concern spans generations and impacts the lives of countless people, which is why EPA is committed to completing the long-needed ban on the continued use of asbestos. I’m proud to have done it.”
The US ban comes after decades of effort, and the US now joins more than 50 other countries that have already passed bans. The EPA first attempted to ban asbestos in 1989 under the George H.W. Bush administration. However, a federal court struck down this ban in 1991, weakening the EPA’s authority. In 2016, Congress passed an amendment strengthening the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976, opening the door to reinstatement of the EPA ban on fibrous silicate minerals. But under the Trump administration, the EPA failed to do so.
President Trump directly supported the use of asbestos in a 1997 book. the art of comeback That’s what it means.100% safe once applied“I believe the anti-asbestos movement was mob-led because many of the asbestos removals were done by mob-related companies,” he wrote in 2018. Russian asbestos company began selling the carcinogenic mineral with a sticker featuring President Trump’s image and the words “Approved by Donald Trump, 45th President of the United States.” Russia is a major supplier of asbestos to the United States.
Trump is running for president again and could move to lift the ban if he wins in November. That’s one reason why some people are calling on Congress to pass a law that completely bans all types of asbestos. The New York Times reported. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) said the EPA’s move today is “a long-overdue step forward for public health. However, this is a long-awaited step forward for public health.” Rather than stopping there, Congress has the following policy.” This is where we have a role to play in providing greater protection for our health. ”
As it stands, the EPA ban gives some companies more time to phase out the use of chrysotile asbestos. The new EPA rule will immediately prohibit the importation of asbestos into the chlor-alkali sector that uses asbestos membranes to disinfect drinking water and wastewater, but will ensure that facilities that do use such membranes transition to non-asbestos membranes. This will take up to 12 years. According to the EPA, there are eight facilities in the United States using these asbestos-containing membranes, six of which are scheduled to be phased out within five years. However, EPA gave companies with multiple facilities up to five years to convert the first facility, eight years to convert the second facility, and up to 12 years to convert the third facility.
Meanwhile, most sheet gaskets containing asbestos will be banned within two years, while sheet gaskets used in titanium dioxide production and nuclear material processing will be phased out over five years. The ban will go into effect within six months on oilfield brake blocks, aftermarket automotive brakes and linings, other vehicle friction products, and other gaskets containing asbestos.
