Asbestos causes tens of thousands of deaths each year, leading to illnesses like mesothelioma and various cancers. The mineral has mostly been eliminated from buildings in the United States.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Washington D.C., DC, informed a federal appeals court that it will review the Biden administration’s prohibition on the final type of asbestos used in the country to evaluate if it exceeded necessary measures.
Annually, asbestos is responsible for numerous fatalities and is linked to diseases such as mesothelioma and different forms of cancer. Its presence in the U.S. has significantly decreased over time. Recently, the Biden administration moved to completely ban chrysotile asbestos as part of a longstanding effort to combat cancer. The EPA hailed this decision as a significant step forward in the fight against the disease.
The EPA on Monday said in a court filing that it would reconsider the Biden administration’s rule over roughly the next 30 months. The agency said the Toxic Substances Control Act requires it to evaluate a chemical’s risk and the consequences of restricting it.
Now, officials will look at whether parts of the ban “went beyond what is necessary to eliminate the unreasonable risk and whether alternative measures — such as requiring permanent workplace protection measures — would eliminate the unreasonable risk,” according to a court declaration by Lynn Ann Dekleva, a senior official in EPA’s Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention.
Chrysotile asbestos is found in products like brake blocks, asbestos diaphragms and sheet gaskets and was banned under the Toxic Substances Control Act, which was broadened in 2016. When the ban was announced, there were eight U.S. facilities that used asbestos diaphragms in the chlor-alkali sector for the manufacture of chlorine and sodium hydroxide, chemicals commonly used as water disinfectants. The facilities were given at least five years to make the change.
The development was first reported by The New York Times.
Advocates blasted the move as weakening prohibitions against a deadly carcinogen.
“This latest move by Administrator Lee Zeldin and EPA is yet another alarming signal that this administration is operating without limits as they dole out favors to polluter lobbyists without regard for the health and well-being of people living in the US,” said Michelle Roos, executive director of the Environmental Protection Network, a nonprofit.
Zeldin has announced dozens of deregulatory actions in the first months of the Trump administration and former top industry officials are in key EPA positions — Dekleva, for example, used to work at the American Chemistry Council, which was among the groups that filed the court challenge against the Biden administration’s ban. Recently, the EPA proposed a rollback of greenhouse gas rules for coal plants.
The American Chemistry Council said it supports the agency’s move to ensure rules “use a risk-based approach consistent with the best available science.”
The EPA did not immediately respond to a request for comment late Tuesday.
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