By MATTHEW DALY (Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency announced on Monday a full ban on asbestos, a cancer-causing substance still used in some chlorine bleach, brake pads, and other products, leading to tens of thousands of American deaths annually.
A new rule from the EPA is expanding the regulation of thousands of toxic chemicals in everyday items, as a result of a 2016 law overhaul, which covers a wide range of products from household cleaners to clothing and furniture.
The new rule would outlaw chrysotile asbestos, the only type of asbestos currently used in the U.S. It is present in products like brake linings and gaskets, and is used in the production of chlorine bleach as well as sodium hydroxide, also known as caustic soda.
The EPA Administrator, Michael Regan, described the final rule as a significant measure to safeguard public health.
“With today’s ban, EPA is finally closing the door on a chemical so dangerous that it has been banned in over 50 countries,” Regan said. ”This historic ban is more than 30 years in the making, and it’s thanks to amendments that Congress made in 2016 to fix the Toxic Substance Control Act,” the main U.S. law governing use of chemicals.
Exposure to asbestos is known to cause lung cancer, mesothelioma, and other cancers, and it is linked to more than 40,000 deaths in the U.S. each year. Ending the ongoing uses of asbestos advances the goals of President Joe Biden’s Cancer Moonshot, a whole-of-government initiative to end cancer in the U.S., Regan said.
“The science is clear: Asbestos is a known carcinogen that has severe impacts on public health. This action is just the beginning as we work to protect all American families, workers, and communities from toxic chemicals,” Regan said.
The 2016 law authorized new rules for thousands of toxic chemicals found in everyday products, including substances like asbestos and trichloroethylene that have been known to cause cancer for decades but were largely unregulated under federal law. The law, known as the Frank Lautenberg Chemical Safety Act, aimed to streamline a patchwork of state rules regulating chemicals and update the Toxic Substances Control Act, a 1976 law that had gone unchanged for 40 years.
Asbestos was originally banned by the EPA in 1989, but a 1991 court ruling greatly weakened the EPA's authority to address health risks from asbestos and other existing chemicals under the Toxic Substances Control Act. The 2016 law mandated that the EPA evaluate chemicals and implement protections against unreasonable risks.
Asbestos, once commonly used in home insulation and other products, is banned in over 50 countries, and its use in the U.S. has been dropping for many years. The only form of asbestos currently imported, processed, or distributed for use in the U.S. is chrysotile asbestos, mainly from Brazil and Russia. It is used by the chlor-alkali industry, which produces bleach, caustic soda, and other products.
Most products that previously had chrysotile asbestos are no longer being made.
While chlorine is commonly used to clean water, there are only 10 chlor-alkali plants in the U.S. that still use asbestos diaphragms to make chlorine and sodium hydroxide. These plants are mainly in Louisiana and Texas.
The use of asbestos diaphragms has been decreasing and now makes up about one-third of the chlor-alkali production in the U.S., according to the EPA.
The EPA rule will stop imports of asbestos for chlor-alkali use once it is published, but a ban on most other uses will take effect in two years.
A ban on using asbestos in oilfield brake blocks, aftermarket automotive brakes, and other gaskets will take effect in six months. A ban on sheet gaskets containing asbestos will take effect in two years, except for those used to make titanium dioxide and for nuclear material processing. The latter uses would be banned in five years.
The EPA rule allows asbestos-containing sheet gaskets to be used until 2037 at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site in South Carolina to ensure safe disposal of nuclear materials can continue as planned, the EPA reported.
Scott Faber, senior VP of the Environmental Working Group, a group that pushed for asbestos to be banned, praised the EPA action.
“For too long, companies have been allowed to produce, use, and release toxins like asbestos and PFAS without considering our health,” Faber said. “Thanks to the leadership of the Biden EPA, those days are finally over.”
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