EPA Agrees to Address Asbestos Data-Collection Deficiencies

Under pressure from a multistate coalition, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has agreed to tighten its data collection process for asbestos, moving the country another step closer to banning the toxic substance. The agreement comes six months after a U.S. District Court judge in California ruled the EPA must improve its ineffective data collection on asbestos imports, and two years after attorneys general in multiple states challenged in court the EPA’s lack of more restrictive asbestos regulations. “The longtime failure of the EPA to regulate asbestos is an environmental injustice and public health tragedy,” said California Attorney General Rob Bonta, a leader in the legal battle with the EPA. Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral that causes a wide range of serious health issues, including malignant mesothelioma cancer. “This is a huge win for public health,” said Linda Reinstein, president and co-founder of the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization, a leading nonprofit organization that has lobbied for years to tighten regulations. Asbestos Exemptions Could Be Eliminated As part of the agreement released June 7, the EPA will initiate stricter rulemaking for asbestos data collection, which should eliminate exemptions that exist under the current regulations. Conditioned on court approval, the EPA agreed to publish the proposed rule changes within the next nine months and the final rules no later than 18 months after the date of s...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Source Type: news