July 23, 2008 – Recently, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced plans to hold a public View this Postmeeting to discuss the method of assessing asbestos-related carcinogenic risks as outlined by the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response (OSWER). Many public health experts have subsequently spoken their concerns with the EPA’s plans, saying if the EPA gets its way, the rules which determine the risk of an asbestos hazard are in danger of being watered down.

Participants at the meeting will discuss and review OSWER’s approach for estimating toxicity factors relating to inhalation of asbestos.

The EPA hopes the result of the meeting will improve its methods for estimating asbestos-related risks at Superfund sites.

Currently the EPA uses methodology developed in the 1980s, which is based on phase contrast microscopy to measure the number of asbestos particles in samples of air, soil, and other media. This method was developed using existing data from workers previously exposed to asbestos in various industrial settings.

However, the EPA methodology currently in use does not account for differences between several types of asbestos. OSWER is proposing that an interim method be developed, which accounts for these and other factors when assessing asbestos exposure risks.

Experts are worried this may lead to several asbestos types being considered “safer” than others and that this is a dangerous way to regulate a substance, which can cause highly lethal diseases such as mesothelioma.

A number of asbestos and asbestos disease experts will be speaking at the meeting, including Richard A. Lemen, a pioneering asbestos researcher and former Assistant Surgeon General. Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization director Linda Reinstein will also speak at the meeting.

Reinstein explains the EPA must reconsider its plans to change the way asbestos risk is assessed. She believes constructing a new risk-assessment model will only make risk assessment more confusing and less safe.

The meeting is planned for July 21 and 22 at the Embassy Suites, 1250 22nd St., NW, Washington., DC. Contact for the event is Douglas Larkin of the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 23rd, 2008 at 1:57 pm and is filed under Asbestos Exposure, Asbestos Legislation, Mesothelioma. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS feed. Responses are currently closed, but you trackback from your own site.