Toxic Legacy: Unmasking Asbestos's Dangerous Past and Present

Asbestos has long been a significant public health concern, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) continues to take decisive steps to evaluate and mitigate its risks. The recent Notice of Availability for the Action: Notice Asbestos Part 2 Supplemental Evaluation (Docket ID #: EPA-HQ-OPPT-2021-0254) represents a crucial milestone in addressing this persistent environmental and health challenge.

Paterson's Textile Past Unravels: EPA Tackles Asbestos Threat

A chapter of industrial history is about to be carefully closed in the heart of Paterson, New Jersey. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced a significant asbestos cleanup operation at the former Allied Textile Printing (ATP) site, set to begin September 16, 2024.

Asbestos Claimants Maybe be Impacted by US Supreme Court Decision

The recent Supreme Court oral arguments in Truck Insurance Exchange v. Kaiser Gypsum Co. Inc. (22-1079) centered on the question of whether an insurer has the right to object to a debtor's reorganization plan under Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The outcome of this case will significantly impact how asbestos claims are handled in bankruptcy proceedings.

US Bans Asbestos

Today, March 18, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a final rule to prohibit ongoing uses of chrysotile asbestos, the only known form of asbestos currently used in or imported to the United States. The ban on ongoing uses of asbestos is the first rule to be finalized under the 2016 amendments to the nation’s chemical safety law, the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), which received near-unanimous support in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate. The action marks a major milestone for chemical safety after more than three decades of inadequate protections and serious delays during the previous administration to implement the 2016 amendments.

New EPA Rule Will Lighten the Burden of Proving an Asbestos-Related Disease Claim

In many occupational asbestos claims, it has been challenging to establish that asbestos fiber was used in the workplace. That will soon change under recently announced US Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] Rules.

EPA Seeks Reporting of Asbestos Fibers

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a final rule to require comprehensive reporting on all six fiber types of asbestos as the agency continues its work to address exposure to this known carcinogen and strengthen the evidence that will be used to protect people from this dangerous chemical further. Historically asbestos, a known carcinogen, has been present in workplaces causing significant occupational exposures to workers, sometimes fatal, and has generated a long wave of workers’ compensation claims.

California Supreme Court Bars Household Contact Covid Claims

Today, the California Supreme Court decided that the Workers’ Compensation Act [WCA] did not bar a derivative claim. However, using a public policy rationale, it did not extend an employer's duty of care to an employee's household contacts who contracted COVID-19.

NJ Supreme Court Enhances Workplace Safety and Adopts an Updated Standard for Medical Causation

A divided NJ Supreme Court upheld a verdict for an employee who suffered mesothelioma, a fatal cancer, as a result of a product manufacturer’s failure to warn of the lethal nature of the product in the workplace. The Court acknowledged that even minor exposure to asbestos could cause disease.

EPA Proposes to Ban Ongoing Uses of Asbestos

In a historic step, the US Environmental Protection Administration [EPA] is moving to protect people from cancer risks and is moving to ban asbestos in the US. The EPA has proposed its first-ever risk management rule under the 2016 Lautenberg Chemical Safety Act.

Across Two Separate Settlements, EPA Commits to Expedite and Strengthen Asbestos Risk Reevaluation Under TSCA

The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO), an independent nonprofit dedicated to preventing asbestos exposure, announced it had reached two landmark legal settlements with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that strengthen and broaden its work to evaluate the health risks of asbestos under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). 

Health Advocates Petition 9th Circuit for Asbestos Relief from EPA’s Flawed Final Risk Evaluation for Asbestos

Joined by five public health groups and six leading asbestos scientists, the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO), an independent nonprofit organization dedicated to preventing asbestos exposure, today asked the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to review the asbestos risk evaluation issued last month by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).

Talc-Based Cosmetics Test Positive for Asbestos

Laboratory tests of talc-based cosmetics products, commissioned by the Environmental Working Group, found asbestos – a deadly human carcinogen for which there is no safe level of exposure – in almost 15 percent of samples. 

Asbestos Advocates and Experts Speak Out Against EPA's Flawed Draft Asbestos Risk

Today the Asbestos Awareness Disease Organization (ADAO)—an independent nonprofit dedicated to preventing asbestos exposure through education, advocacy, and community initiatives—spoke out about the exclusions in EPA’s Draft Asbestos Risk Evaluation that will keep Americans at severe risk of deadly exposure to asbestos.

Asbestos: Strict Liability Imposed Against Product Manufacturers for Ordinary Product Life

The NJ Supreme Court decided an asbestos product liability case that mandates strict liability against manufacturers or distributors of products that contain asbestos-fiber. The court in granting strict liability for failure to adequately warn ultimate users during the ordinary life of the product of the dangers. The Court aligned NJ common law with the US Supreme Court, the NY Court of appeals and the Maryland Court of Appeals.

Fourteen Attorney Generals Criticizes EPA for Failing to Protect Americans from Asbestos, a Long-Known Dangerous Carcinogen

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra and Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, leading a coalition of 14 attorneys general, including New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal, submitted comments criticizing the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) finding that certain uses of asbestos present no unreasonable risk to human health. In the comment letter, the coalition argues that the EPA’s draft risk evaluation for asbestos violates the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and Congress' intent that the EPA consider all uses of asbestos in its evaluation. The coalition notes the finding is unsupported by the EPA's own assessment and urges the agency to obtain the information it has admitted it needs to conduct the necessary, thorough evaluations of the risks presented by this chemical.

Better Chemistry Through Regulation

The newly released movie, Dark Waters, provides a dramatic insight into the corporate disregard to human safety and life. The film, to be nationally released this weekend, puts into focus the chemical industry's utter disregard for human life that is compounded by the lack of governmental regulation of an out-of-control business.

Efforts to Protect the Public From Asbestos Exposure

Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey today released a new report highlighting her office’s ongoing efforts to protect children, families, and workers from the health risks posed by exposure to asbestos.

White House Contamination Highlights Asbestos Controversy

Ivanka Trump, Kellyanne Conway and other senior White House aides have vacated their West Wing offices while asbestos is removed – even as the Trump administration is manipulating a federal chemical safety law to keep asbestos legal.

Cosmetic Products Containing Asbestos Recalled

Hazardous cosmetic products containing deadly asbestos fiber continue to appear in the workplace. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently issued an alert concerning a voluntary recall concerning one of those cosmetic products. 

On May 29, and 30, 2019 Beauty Plus Global and Claire’s Stores, Inc., undertook voluntary recalls of their respective cosmetic products that tested positive for asbestos during FDA’s ongoing testing of cosmetics for asbestos. The recalled products include:

· Beauty Plus Global Contour Effects Palette 2, Batch No. S1603002/PD-C1179

· Claire’s JoJo Siwa Makeup Set, SKU #888711136337, Batch/Lot No. S180109

Consumers who have these batches/Lots of Beauty Plus or Claire's products should stop using them.

The FDA is advising consumers not to use any of the following products.

Health care professionals and consumers are encouraged to report any adverse events to FDA’s MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting program by:

· Completing and submitting the report online at MedWatch Online Voluntary Reporting Form

· Downloading and completing the form, then submitting it via fax at 1-800-FDA-0178

For more information on FDA's investigation of potential asbestos contamination in cosmetics, see the FDA’s Talc

Asbestos in Bowling Balls Results in $4.4 Million Verdict

A jury in California sided with the family of a former bowling alley owner who contracted mesothelioma after drilling asbestos-containing bowling balls for years.