12th ADAO Congressional Staff Briefing “TSCA and Asbestos: Protecting Public Health And The Environment” on September 26, 2017

1. LINDA REINSTEIN
Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO)
President/CEO and Co-Founder
Linda@adao.us
Congressional Staff Briefing
“TSCA and Asbestos:
Protecting Public Health And The Environment”
September 26, 2017

3. Mesothelioma Awareness Day
In honor of asbestos victims, all who have
been exposed, diagnosed with an asbestos-
caused disease, their families, and those
who have passed away.
@Linda_ADAO

4. 12th ADAO
Congressional Staff Briefing
www.adao.us

5. ADAO Briefing Resources
www.adao.us

7. @Linda_ADAO

10. 1976-2013
@Linda_ADAO
Michael - GAJanelle - IN
Deadly Hugs

11. “During 1999–2015, the annual number
of malignant mesothelioma deaths
increased 4.8% overall”
@Linda_ADAO

12. IMPORTS
In 2016, asbestos imports doubled
after years of declining use
@Linda_ADAO

13. Brent Kynoch
Managing Director
Environmental Information Association (EIA)

14. What is Asbestos?

15. @Linda_ADAO

16. Where is Asbestos?

17. Asbestos in Schools Report
@Linda_ADAO

18. Asbestos in Homes, Schools, Workplaces
• TSCA has a term, “legacy, “ that is not entirely
accurate when discussing asbestos.
• EPA estimates that up to 35 million homes, schools,
and office buildings contain asbestos materials
• 15 million students and 1.4 school staff and faculty
are exposed to asbestos in schools
• Asbestos is the number 1 cause of occupational
cancer deaths worldwide

19. Dr. Raja Flores
Chief of Thoracic Surgery
Mount Sinai Medical Center

20. Dr. Flores is an
expert in asbestos
cancers and works
with the World
Trade Center
Health Program at
Mt. Sinai Hospital
in New York City.

21. @Linda_ADAO

23. 9/11 Aftermath
World Trade Center
Health Program
• 67,000+ WTC
rescue/recovery workers &
12,000+ community members
monitored and treated
• Over 50% are afflicted with
chronic, exposure-related
conditions, which represents
a 7% increase over last year
• 1,387 have died since the
program’s inception
• New patients diagnosed with
WTC-related cancer 10-15
times every week
@Linda_ADAO

24. “They saved us.
Now it’s our turn
to save them.”
Dr. Raja Flores

25. Pat Morrison
Assistant General President for Health,
Safety and Medicine
International Association of Firefighters

26. NIOSH: “Firefighters in the study had a rate of
mesothelioma two times greater than the rate
in the U.S. population as a whole.”
@Linda_ADAO

27. 31 Million Metric Tons
Asbestos Consumption 1900 - 2017

28. 9/11 World Trade Center Firefighter Study

29. Natural and Man-Made Disasters
• 2001 9/11 Terrorist attacks: An estimated 2,000 tons of
asbestos fibers
• 2011 Joplin, Missouri Tornado: An estimated 2,600 tons
of asbestos debris
• 2012 Hurricane Sandy: Over 5.6 million cubic yards of
debris removed including asbestos
There is a trend. In 2017 Hurricanes Harvey and Irma caused mass damage.
Levels of asbestos debris are unknown at this time, but these disasters will
continue; and exposure to high levels of asbestos will continue.
@Linda_ADAO

30. There is no safe level of exposure to
asbestos, a known carcinogen, and it
becomes especially dangerous when the
microscopic asbestos fibers become
dislodged and airborne
@Linda_ADAO

31. Environmental Consultant
Barry Castleman, ScD

32. @Linda_ADAO

33. Asbestos Users
@Linda_ADAO

34. Over 60% of
U.S. chlor-alkali
industry relies
on technology
that uses
asbestos
diaphragms.

35. Chloralkali Asbestos Exposure Pathways
1. Mining and Milling
2. Transporting
3. Storage
4. Chloralkali Processing
5. Spillage and Clean-up
6. Removal/Replacement of Asbestos Diaphragms
7. Disposal
@Linda_ADAO

36. Reinstein 8/9/2012 Linda@adao.us
Consensus:
There is “no
safe use” of
asbestos

37. Andy Igrejas
Executive Director
Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families (SCHF)

38. Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families
The Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families
coalition represents 450 organizations and
businesses, including parents groups,
health professionals, advocates for people
with learning and developmental disabilities,
labor unions, public health advocates, and
environmental groups large and small from
across the nation.
@Linda_ADAO

39. President Obama Signs TSCA Reform into Law

40. • Asbestos
• 1-Bromopropane
• Carbon Tetrachloride
• 1, 4 Dioxane
• Cyclic Aliphatic Bromide Cluster (HBCD)
• Methylene Chloride
• N-Methylpyrolidone
• Perchloroethylene
• Pigment Violet 29
• Trichloroethylene
EPA Prioritizes First 10 High-Risk Chemicals
(December 2016)
@Linda_ADAO

41. EPA Risk Evaluation Process and
Timeline
@Linda_ADAO

42. • Administrator Pruitt has denied the science and
medical consensus that exists around asbestos.
• Nancy Beck went straight from the American
Chemistry Council to the senior political position in
the EPA toxics office.
• Michael Dourson has made a career of mostly
downplaying risks of toxic substances, including
tobacco.
EPA Staff Issues
@Linda_ADAO

43. • Coalition of organizations has sued EPA over
the framework rules, including prioritization
and risk evaluation. The rules are especially
relevant to asbestos.
• If EPA excludes the largest source of
asbestos (imports for the chlor-alkali industry)
from its evaluation, that will be wrong and will
likely result in more litigation.
Litigation
@Linda_ADAO

44. Photo by AK Rockefeller - Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License https://www.flickr.com/photos/79854445@N06 Created with Haiku Deck

45. $4.6 million in imported asbestos
contaminated consumer goods (2015 USA)
@Linda_ADAO

46. Photo by Great Beyond - Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License https://www.flickr.com/photos/26104563@N00 Created with Haiku Deck
@Linda_ADAO

47. Created with Haiku Deck@Linda_ADAO

49. Asbestos Tailing Piles (VT)
@Linda_ADAO

50. “CI members believe that with the effective controls
currently in place, a scientifically based risk
assessment of the chlor-alkali industry’s use of
asbestos in chlorine production will demonstrate
that this use does not pose an unreasonable health
risk to workers.””

51. Reinstein 8/9/2012 Linda@adao.us
As written, the EPA’s asbestos scoping doc
will not lead to a full evaluation of the risk or
complete asbestos ban.
DEADLY EXCLUSIONS & FLAWS:
Importer Exemption
Legacy Asbestos
“Conditions of Use”
Libby Amphibole

52. Can’t
• Identify or manage the risk
Linda@adao.us@Linda_ADAO

53. 11,000 signatures in support for
an Exemption Free Ban
@Linda_ADAO