The US bans most common form of asbestos after decades of pushback from industry

The Environmental Protection Agency announced Monday that it is banning the most common form of asbestos, a cancer-causing substance that’s linked to the deaths of tens of thousands of Americans every year.

Arthur Frank, a professor of environmental and occupational health at Drexel University, said the rule doesn’t outlaw all forms of asbestos, and the substance still lurks in many existing buildings and products across the country. “An immediate ban on the import of chrysotile asbestos for the chlor-alkali industry is a long overdue step forward for public health,” Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., said in a statement. “However, it cannot be the end of the road when it comes to phasing out other dangerous asbestos fibers, and Congress has a role to play here when it comes to providing stronger protections for our health.”Though the use of asbestos in the U.S. has been on the wane, it hasn’t vanished altogether.

Asbestos isn’t required to produce chlorine, the agency noted, and two-thirds of the chlorine made in the U.S. is done so without the use of asbestos.

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