Part 2 of EPA's 2024 Asbestos Evaluation (And Why It Matters)
Examining the Environmental Protection Agency’s Latest Analysis of Asbestos’ Dangers
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has taken another significant step toward addressing the dangers of asbestos, a well-known carcinogen and ongoing public health concern. On December 3, 2024, the EPA released Part 2 of its asbestos evaluation, targeting legacy uses and associated disposal risks. The move is sure to have major implications for public health, environmental safety, and regulatory enforcement. This article will discuss the agency’s evaluation, its findings, and how this ties into personal and community health.
The Legacy of Asbestos: A Persistent Threat
Asbestos is a group of fibrous minerals once valued for durability and heat resistance, commonly used in construction, automotive parts, and industrial applications. It was especially popular during the majority of the 20th century in industries such as construction, textiles, shipbuilding, and automotive parts. Because it was a sought-after additive in infrastructure, the toxin quickly made its way into many commercial and industrial buildings, as well as residential homes.
Over time, however, the hazards of asbestos use—particularly its link to diseases like mesothelioma, lung cancer, and asbestosis—became undeniable. Those who handled it day after day in the workplaces, and their families, began to develop respiratory issues and other health conditions.
Latency: The Long Wait for Asbestos Disease
Asbestos exposure is particularly insidious because symptoms can take decades to develop. It can take anywhere from 20-60 years before someone who was exposed directly or secondhand to develop symptoms of asbestos-related conditions. This is why it’s important for anyone who is considered high risk to undergo regular health screenings, including imaging tests, to detect the presence of internal fibers. Early detection can make a substantial difference in health outcomes.
Despite regulatory efforts, asbestos remains a legacy hazard in many older structures, such as homes, schools, and industrial sites. Asbestos abatement can be a costly venture, and a do-it-yourself removal approach could lead to exposure as well as financial and legal consequences. Thus, oftentimes, leaving it concealed behind walls and floorboards, it preferred—yet this isn’t a failsafe approach. As aging structures begin to experience wear and tear, fibers can be released into the air.
The EPA and other health advocates have been pushing for restrictions on asbestos use since the 1970s, and the agency was successful in instituting a partial ban in the mid-1980s. However, legacy asbestos has presented an ongoing issue.
Personal Health Considerations
Assessing Exposure Risks
Determining whether an individual or their family members have been exposed to asbestos requires understanding past environments and activities. Key factors include:
Occupational History: Jobs in construction, firefighting, automotives, and shipbuilding often involve high exposure risks, as does military service.
Secondary Exposure: Family members of workers in high-risk industries may have been exposed through asbestos fibers carried home on clothing or tools.
Home Inspections: Homes constructed before the 1980s likely have asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) inside.
Identifying one’ s level of risk is an important first step in undergoing regular medical check-ups to monitor for the presence of fibers in the body and any complications that may have resulted from the inflammation and cell mutations these fibers can cause.
The Importance of Ongoing Screenings
Early detection of issues caused by internal fibers is essential. This often allows for proactive interventions that can improve health outcomes. Medical professionals recommend:
Regular Imaging: Undergoing chest X-rays and CT scans for those with known exposure.
Pulmonary Function Tests: These tests are specially designed to assess lung health.
Monitoring Symptoms: Being mindful of persistent coughing, shortness of breath, or chest pain that could warrant a medical evaluation.
Those with prolonged exposure should remain under medical surveillance, rather than receiving only one thorough check-up. Health complications can develop at any time and it’s important to continually monitor for any new issues.
Understanding Part 2 of the EPA’s Evaluation
While Part 1 of the EPA’s evaluation focused on initiating action to eliminate the ongoing use of asbestos in industrial applications, Part 2 is centered around legacy uses and disposal risks, assessing materials still present in older buildings and products. It expands on earlier studies by addressing:
Five additional asbestos fiber types beyond chrysotile.
These include amosite, crocidolite, tremolite, anthophyllite and actinolite.
Industrial uses of asbestos-containing talc.
Listing of legacy and ongoing sources of industrial exposure to asbestos.
Libby asbestos contamination from mining sites.
This addresses the infamous contamination from mining operations in Libby, Montana, which has caused widespread environmental and health impacts in the surrounding region and remains an issue requiring long-term remediation efforts.
Conclusions.
The EPA concluded that asbestos still poses unreasonable risks to human health and the environment under its legacy uses and disposal conditions, specifically with regards to occupational and secondary exposure as well as associated environment hazards.
Talc: An Often-Overlooked Danger
Addressed in the EPA’s report, asbestos contamination in talc, a mineral used in industrial applications and some consumer products, also remains a significant concern. Found in items such as baby powder, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and even food, it has been long sought-after for its absorbent and anti-caking properties.
Unfortunately, talc and asbestos deposits co-exist in nature, and it is difficult to mine talc without it becoming contaminated with asbestos. Both are silicate compounds found in ultramafic rock formations, which are rich in magnesium and iron.
Because of difficulties with separating talc from this carcinogen, there has been an uptick in latent cancers cases in those who have used talc-containing products. Part 2 urges that more attention be given around talc as a potential source of asbestos exposure.
Health and Environmental Impacts of Legacy Asbestos
Economic and Environmental Burdens
The cost of asbestos contamination extends beyond health, affecting cleanup efforts, legal liabilities, and economic productivity. Legacy materials in homes and industrial sites continue to demand substantial resources for testing, removal, and mitigation.
Protective Measures
Key steps to reducing exposure risks include:
Testing Older Buildings: Soliciting professional inspections to identify ACMs.
Hiring Certified Professionals: These companies have the safety gear and protocols necessary to engage in proper removal, and thus, remediation should only be done by certified abatement professionals, not building owners.
Implementing Containment: This involves weighing the pros and cons of keeping non-friable asbestos intact based on potential exposure risks during abatement. If asbestos is left undisturbed, however, ongoing monitoring is vital to ensure wear and tears haven’t impacted containment.
Public programs and subsidies can help underserved communities address these risks more effectively. These communities tend to have a high exposure risk due to the fact that there are limited resources for removing asbestos in aging buildings (i.e., schools) and homes.
Understanding Next Steps
Regulatory Actions
Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the EPA must propose measures to manage the risks identified. Potential actions include:
Banning Legacy ACMs: Prohibiting use in high-risk environments.
Stricter Disposal Standards: Ensuring safe and sustainable handling of asbestos waste.
Enhanced Labeling: Requiring clear identification of asbestos-containing materials.
Public Involvement
Community participation in regulatory processes is essential. Public feedback can shape stronger, more effective policies.
Advocacy and Awareness
Promoting Preventive Measures. Organizations like the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) emphasize that “prevention is the cure.” Advocacy for better regulations, testing, and public education plays a vital role in reducing exposure and saving lives.
Protecting Vulnerable Populations. Efforts must prioritize workers, veterans, and economically disadvantaged groups who face disproportionate risks.
Using Parts 1 and 2 to Reduce Safety Risks Moving Forward
The EPA’s 2024 asbestos evaluation details the ongoing dangers of legacy asbestos and the urgent need for more regulation to safeguard public health. While earlier efforts focused on ceasing new imports of asbestos, this latest initiative centers around the broader threat posed by aging infrastructure and improperly managed disposal sites.
Asbestos continues to lurk in older homes, schools, commercial and industrial buildings, and even contaminated environmental sites. By addressing these risks, the EPA has broadened its regulatory framework, closing gaps that have left workers, families, and communities vulnerable to health complications. Promoting awareness, proactive health screenings, worker protections, and proper abatement are some of the ways in which this can be accomplished.