10th Annual National Asbestos Awareness Week Shines Spotlight on Asbestos Hazards
In January of this year, the U.S. Senate passed Senate Resolution 336 to establish the 10th Annual National Asbestos Awareness Week. It takes place the first week of April and is meant to raise awareness of hazards and diseases associated with asbestos. Exposure to asbestos fibers can cause mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer. These conditions may not develop until years after exposure.
In the past, asbestos was added to many common building materials. Although many people think that the use of asbestos has been banned in the U.S., there are still products that can legally contain the material. In 1989, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final rule under Section 6 of Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) banning most asbestos-containing products. However, in 1991, this rule was vacated and remanded by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. As a result, most of the original ban on the manufacture, importation, processing, or commerce distribution of asbestos-containing products covered in the 1989 final rule was overturned.
Although the use of asbestos is banned in some products due to regulations such as TSCA, the Clean Air Act (CAA) and the Consumer Product Safety Act, there are still products that can legally contain asbestos. The EPA provides a partial list of products that are not currently banned from containing asbestos. They include:
- Cement corrugated sheet
- Cement flat sheet
- Clothing
- Pipeline wrap
- Roofing felt
- Vinyl floor tile
- Cement shingle
- Millboard
- Cement pipe
- Automatic transmission components
- Clutch facings
- Friction materials
- Disk brake pads
- Drum brake linings
- Brake blocks
- Gaskets
- Non-roofing coatings
- Roof coatings
“National Asbestos Awareness Week is the perfect opportunity for people to educate themselves about the potential hazards that exposure to asbestos can cause,” said Ed Cahill, Vice President, Asbestos Division at EMSL Analytical, one of the largest asbestos testing laboratories in North America. “Although many materials that once contained asbestos are no longer manufactured with the material, people should be aware that its use is not universally banned.”
Since 1981, EMSL has been providing testing services to help identify materials and environmental samples that contain asbestos. To learn more about EMSL’s asbestos services, please visit www.AsbestosTestingLab.com or www.EMSL.com, call (800) 220-3675 or email info@EMSL.com .
About EMSL Analytical, Inc.
EMSL Analytical is a nationally recognized and locally focused provider of environmental, indoor air quality and materials testing services and products to professionals and the general public. The company has an extensive list of accreditations from leading organizations as well as state and federal regulating bodies.
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Asbestos Awareness Week- Contact Information
- Joe Frasca
- Senior Vice President of Marketing
- EMSL Analytical, Inc.
- (1) (856) 303-2503
- Contact via E-mail
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