Asbestos

Asbestos imports to the U.S. nearly doubled last year to 300 tons compared with the previous year, according to the U.S. Department of Interior. The number represents a significant increase from the 172 tons of asbestos the country imported In 2019. The statistics come from the U.S. Geological Survey’s Mineral Commodity Summaries 2021, an annual [...]

Asbestos is a fibrous mineral that swept the nation from the 1920s to the 1980s as the primary resource of fire retardant coatings, insulation, and countless other products. While industry and government knew it was hazardous from the start, it wasn’t until the 1980s that workers learned about the dangers of asbestos, and after many [...]

Sixty-seven countries around the world have banned the use of asbestos. The U.S. is not among them — at least, not anymore. In 1989, the Environmental Protection Agency banned asbestos in American products, but after the industry sued, a federal appeals court overturned the EPA’s ban two years later. Though asbestos has been somewhat regulated [...]

Most homeowners or renters do not wake up to the alarming situation that confronted a New York resident last year. Sometime after his family moved into a Long Island rental home last May, Andrew Sirico — the father of three children — found something quite troublesome in his backyard. Four trailers filled with construction debris, [...]

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a risk evaluation for chrysotile asbestos on December 30, 2020. The EPA found that there is an unreasonable risk to workers, consumers, and bystanders. Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the EPA’s next step will be to develop a plan to reduce or eliminate the unreasonable risks [...]

Asbestos has plagued American infrastructure for generations. At the beginning of the 20th century, laborers used asbestos liberally in new buildings as insulation, unknowingly exposing many blue-collar workers to the carcinogen. Today, many older buildings still contain asbestos in the walls, risking exposure to those who live or work there. In September 2020, inspectors found [...]

In the past three decades, the public has become increasingly aware of the dangers of second-hand smoke. Many workplaces now have designated smoking areas, while some households banish smokers altogether. They know second-hand produces harmful effects to those who breathe it. The same type of awareness about the dangers of secondary exposure to asbestos is [...]

This summer, most will agree that this was a season not like any other. The only predictable tradition was the “weather” events ranging from severe thunderstorms in the Midwest to catastrophic hurricanes in the South. Countless homes throughout the country suffered severe damage that required massive efforts to clear out debris. Many dwellings were destroyed [...]