NIOSH Testimony on New Asbestos Standard by A. Robbins, April 17, 1980.

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  This testimony concerned the findings of a joint NIOSH/OSHA Work Group which reviewed recent scientific information about the health effects of asbestos (1332214). The study group reconfirmed that there is no safe exposure limit for asbestos and that all commercial and several noncommercial forms of asbestos cause disease. This report served to recommend to the Department of Labor that it promulgate a safer standard for workers exposed to asbestos and that it eliminate from the workplace all exposures from new nonessential uses of asbestos. The group asked that the new standard set a maximum workplace exposure limit of 100,000 fibers per cubic meter of air, the lowest level which can be accurately measured. The present level is two million fibers per cubic meter of air. Asbestos has been found to cause asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma. Exposure to asbestos has also been related to significant increases in the incidence of laryngeal and gastrointestinal cancers. The group concluded that substitutes for asbestos be used whenever possible. Medical testing procedures for asbestos exposed workers should include chest x-rays, pulmonary function tests, and observations of respiratory and other clinical symptoms. Results of medical examinations should be reported directly to the employee, and asbestos workers showing respiratory problems should be afforded the opportunity to transfer to jobs where there is no asbestos exposure. Regulations should protect all workers who are possibly exposed to asbestos.
• Subjects:
  Accidents, Occupational Air Pollutants, Occupational Butadienes Chloroprene Environmental Monitoring Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Asbestos-products Asbestos-workers Carcinogens Construction-workers Epidemiology Lung-disease NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Testimony Pulmonary-system-disorders Risk-analysis Robbins-A

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• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Testimony
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-7
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00193581
• Citation:
  NIOSH 1980 Apr:7 pages
• CAS Registry Number:
  Asbestos (CAS RN 1332-21-4)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1980
• NORA Priority Area:
  Asthma and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ; Disease and Injury ; Pulmonary System Disorders
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:2e3f8ba1e1011483f8d6f7b9d83b784fb3ef38795a1b3f5a3de490552eb70d796e5e26ac2258293bb088e18a859f77c319ab63b7da278f91b3c26b7c318363d3
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/180345/cdc_180345_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 287.36 KB ]