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.
"The science is clear – asbestos is a known carcinogen that has severe impacts on public health," EPA administrator Michael Regan."This action is just the beginning as we work to protect all American families, workers, and communities from toxic chemicals.", including lung and ovarian cancer, asbestosis and mesothelioma. More than 40,000 deaths in the U.S. each year are connected to asbestos exposure.
"This is not a total ban by any means," Frank said."It is a modest step that reduces future exposures."Federal regulators said Monday that the ban was the first rule to be finalized under the updated Toxic Substances Control Act, the national chemical safety law that wasoutright in the late 1980s, but companies fought back. When the agency announced its 1989 prohibition on the use of asbestos, there was a carve-out for the chlorine industry.
The chlor-alkali industry uses large filters containing asbestos called diaphragms to make chemicals such as sodium hydroxide and chlorine, which can be used to disinfect drinking water and wastewater.