Excerpt: "We thought we had relieved America of a death-dealing substance, asbestos, but it keeps finding its way into lungs with the aid of an accomplice. This time asbestos' friend is the Environmental Protection Agency."
A worker in hazmat gear bagging asbestos-laden debris after a wildfire in Santa Rosa, Calif., in 2017. (photo: Jim Wilson/NYT)
Asbestos Kills Nearly 40,000 Americans a Year. Ban It.
16 October 19
The United States should follow other countries and protect its citizens from the deadly chemical, write two former E.P.A. administrators.
ike the varmints in an old western movie, some rattlesnakes just won’t stay dead. We thought we had relieved America of a death-dealing substance, asbestos, but it keeps finding its way into lungs with the aid of an accomplice. This time asbestos’ friend is the Environmental Protection Agency. The same E.P.A. that created the rules to ban it. Well, maybe not the same E.P.A.
Every year, asbestos takes the lives of nearly 40,000 Americans, and thousands more face a lifetime of pain and suffering from disabling lung diseases like asbestosis and mesothelioma, yet its use remains largely unregulated in the United States.
As former E.P.A. administrators who led the agency during pivotal moments in its long struggle to rid our society of asbestos, we can say unequivocally that this struggle will not end anytime soon unless Congress passes the Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Act (Arban). This bill is advancing in the House of Representatives and, in coming days, the Energy and Commerce Committee will have an opportunity to send it to the House floor for passage with bipartisan support.
|
THE NEW STREAMLINED RSN LOGIN PROCESS: Register once, then login and you are ready to comment. All you need is a Username and a Password of your choosing and you are free to comment whenever you like! Welcome to the Reader Supported News community. |
