Campaigners regard this as a step towards
introducing legislation which might limit the number of compensation cases clogging up the
court system.
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Law Lords Allow Claims For Asbestos-Rrelated Disease
When More Than One Employer Is Involved
Thu May 16,1018 AM ET
By SUE LEEMAN, Associated Press Writer
LONDON - After years of litigation, hundreds of victims of asbestos-related diseases
who were exposed to the mineral fibers by more than one employer won their battle for
compensation Thursday. In a decision that will hit insurers hard, Britain's highest court
of appeal ruled that people suffering from asbestos-related diseases are entitled to
compensation, even if they are uncertain which source of the dust caused their illness.
The Law Lords — five judges who sit in the House of Lords — overturned a
Court of Appeal ruling in December that employers could not be held liable where it was
impossible to prove which exposure caused the disease.
Experts say the decision is likely to cost insurance companies up to 8 billion pounds
(dlrs 12 billion) to settle around 500 claims. George Brumwell, general secretary of the
union Ucatt, which backed the action, said the judgment "will help thousands of
sufferers from asbestos-related diseases and will teach the insurance industry a lesson it
will never forget.
"The insurance companies have been shamed by this decision," he said. Led by
Lord Bingham, the Law Lords spent three days hearing argument in three test cases. Lawyers
for Judith Fairchild and Doreen Fox, whose husbands both died of mesothelioma, a form of
lung cancer, and 54-year-old Edwin Matthews, who is gravely ill with mesothelioma, had
appealed the Appeal Court decision.
Fairchild, whose husband Arthur died in 1996, said Thursday's ruling was "the
right result, not only for myself but the thousands affected by this terrible disease. My
husband deserved to win." She can now expect compensation of around 191,000 pounds
(dlrs 277,000. The Law Lords' decision also means that Matthews can keep 155,000 pounds
(dlrs 224,000) awarded him earlier by the High Court. The Appeal Court had overturned that
decision and ordered him to repay the money.
Adrian Budgen, a partner in the law firm Irwin Mitchell, which handles many
asbestos-related cases, described the ruling as "fair and compassionate."
"In the coming years there will be literally thousands of people in the U.K. who will
develop asbestos-related illnesses and lose loved ones due to past exposure to asbestos.
"At least they will now have the comfort of knowing that the British justice
system is on their side." Around 5,000 people died in Britain last year of
mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases, and industry experts say the figure is
expected to rise to 10,000 by 2010. Asbestos is a mineral that was popular as a thermal
insulator. But while manufacturers and the government were aware of the health risks
associated with occupational asbestos exposure, it continued to be widely used until the
mid-1970s as an insulator and fireproofer.
People who were most-exposed to the substance — construction workers, welders,
ship builders and auto mechanics — have been increasingly diagnosed with
asbestos-related diseases, such as lung fibrosis and mesothelomia. It can take 50 years
from the time of exposure to asbestos for the cancer to show up.
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Judge 'Amazed' by Honeywell Removal Attempt; Threatens
Sanctions
May 2, 2002
GALVESTON, Texas — Asbestos defendant Honeywell International has evoked the ire
of a federal judge in Texas after attempting to remove a friction product claim to federal
court when he and several other federal judges have repeatedly determined they do not have
jurisdiction over such claims.
Armstrong, et al., v. Honeywell International, Inc., No. G-02-261 (S.D. Texas).
In a brief, but sharply-worded opinion issued three days after the removal attempt, U.S.
District Judge Samuel B. Kent threatened to hold Honeywell in contempt if it again
attempts to remove the claims to federal court.
As other friction defendants have done over the past six months, Honeywell removed the
asbestosis claim in question arguing that it was related to the Federal-Mogul bankruptcy
proceedings that are ongoing in Delaware. Previous attempts to do so have been thwarted by
several federal judges in Texas and by the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, which
ruled recently that defendant Garlock Inc.’s move to remand cases on similar
"related to" grounds was improper.
However, friction defendants have nonetheless continued to remove the claims to federal
court by virtue of hypothetical claims for indemnity or contribution against the debtor,
Judge Kent said in his recent opinion. Such was the case when Honeywell removed the
instant claim on April 19. This time, however, Judge Kent said he had seen enough.
"Defendant Honeywell amazingly propounds the same old, tired, and now
thrice-rebuked argument," Judge Kent wrote. "The Court is understandably
confounded as to Honeywell’s rationale for removing this lawsuit, and queries as to
how many times it must effectuate these remand orders for Defendants to finally grasp the
big picture."
So, for the last time, Judge Kemp emphasized once again that the claims are not
removable because they are not, as a matter of law, related to the Federal-Mogul case
under Chapter 11. The judge remanded the case for what he said was the "final
time."
"Although Honeywell’s conduct in removing this lawsuit is arguably
sanctionable, the Court is loathe to waste any more of its valuable time on this
case," the judge said. "Instead, the Court instructs Honeywell that any further
attempts to remove this or similarly situated asbestosis cases may be regarded as an ACT
OF CONTEMPT."
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Docs Fear Cancer Risk Downtown
Monday April 29 0100 AM EDT
By BILL HOFFMANN
New Yorkers who live and work near the site of the World Trade Center may be at
increased risk of developing asbestos-related cancers, medical experts say.
The American College of Preventative Medicine said it is particularly concerned about a
deadly form of cancer of the lungs called malignant mesothelioma.
Dr. Stephen Levin of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine revealed the possible increase
in cancer risk while addressing a recent ACPM meeting of health experts.
He said the exact quantity of asbestos fibers emitted into the air after the collapse
of the Twin Towers remains unclear.
But "it is likely that those individuals who live and work in close vicinity to
the site are at some increased risk for the development of asbestos-related cancers,
including malignant mesothelioma," Levin said.
The majority of people diagnosed with the disease have typically held jobs at which
they inhaled asbestos over a prolonged period of time, such as construction workers,
roofers and plumbers.
However, some with even brief exposure to asbestos have developed mesothelioma
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Asbestos Risk for Those at World Trade Site
Fri Apr 26,1022 AM ET
By Alison McCook
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Asbestos has been found in virtually all dust samples taken
around the site of the collapsed World Trade Center in New York, and people who had direct
contact with large quantities of such dust may be at slightly higher risk of cancer, an
expert said here Thursday.
However, the vast majority of New Yorkers will have no ill effects from the asbestos
released into the environment on September 11th, said Dr. Stephen M. Levin of the Mount
Sinai School of Medicine at a press conference at the New York Academy of Sciences.
"I think we're not going to see a huge wave of mesothelial cases 20, 30 years down
the road," Levin stated.
Asbestos, a substance used in fireproofing and insulation, if inhaled, can cause a rare
type cancer known as mesothelioma, which originates in the lining of the lung and chest.
The majority of mesothelioma cases appear 20 to 40 years after an exposure, and, in the
US, around 2,500 people are diagnosed each year.
Although some cases of mesothelioma have been linked to as little as one month spent
around asbestos, Levin said that the vast majority of cases stem from spending years
working around asbestos.
During the construction of the World Trade Center, asbestos was lined along certain
structures to prevent the building from buckling during a fire. On September 11th, the
force of the collapsing buildings spewed large clouds of dust made up of concrete,
fiberglass and asbestos.
Levin noted that the substance is present in many buildings and materials. Brake pads
and lining contain asbestos, so even braking vehicles can release small particles of the
mineral into the air, Levin said. Consequently, most people have traces of asbestos in
their lungs, and most will never develop any long-term health effects.
At the World Trade Center site, rescue workers and those who cleaned out neighboring
buildings have been "placing themselves at some small increase of risk," Levin
said.
Levin noted that people who have a slightly higher risk of developing mesothelioma
after the World Trade Center collapse are also those who were caught in the
"cloud" that appeared when each building fell down, or those who returned to
school or work when the area was still littered with dust, and reporters and camera
people, some of whom spent weeks at the site.
Laborers charged with cleaning up dust and debris from neighboring buildings, most of
whom did not use facemasks to protect themselves, might also be at risk.
People are more at risk of exposure from disturbing debris containing asbestos, and
simply walking past the rubble does not pose a significant threat, Levin said.
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Swiss Approve Asbestos Probe Help
Thursday March 28, 1041 am Eastern Time
Associated Press
Swiss Judge Approves Help for Italy in Asbestos Investigation
BERN, Switzerland (AP) -- A Swiss judge has ordered two companies to hand over
documents to Italian authorities carrying out a criminal investigation into deaths linked
to asbestos, the justice ministry said Thursday.
Eternit AG -- a building materials manufacturer based in the eastern town of
Niederurnen -- and the national workplace insurance company SUVA must comply with requests
from the Turin public prosecutor, said ministry spokesman Folco Galli.
Italian authorities are carrying out a negligent homicide investigation into the deaths
of at least 12 Italian former employees of Eternit who died from illnesses possibly caused
by exposure to asbestos. Four of the employees were covered by policies taken out with
SUVA.
Eternit admitted last month that at least 45 former employees have died from
mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lungs linked to asbestos exposure. No criminal
or civil case has been opened in Switzerland.
Eternit insists it took precautions as soon as the possible dangers of inhaling
asbestos dust became known, in the mid-1970s, and it eliminated asbestos entirely in 1990.
However, cases of illness continue to occur because the dust can remain latent in the
lungs for up to 40 years, Eternit said.
Despite the actions that the company took to protect its workers, "we cannot
forget that around 45 employees who worked at Niederurnen died from mesothelioma, and we
have to take responsibility for this part of our history," said Eternit chief Anders
Holte.
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Experts See No End to U.S. Asbestos Lawsuits
http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/020326/n26359425_1.html
Tuesday March 26, 451 pm Eastern Time
(Adds detail on insurance industry, paragraphs 15, 16, 17)
By Julie MacIntosh
NEW YORK, March 26 (Reuters) - Industry leaders across corporate America have assured
investors they're prepared to handle a surge in asbestos-related lawsuits, but experts say
the number of claims filed could quadruple from the current level of more than 600,000,
pushing costs past $200 billion.
Preliminary results of the latest study from the RAND Institute for Civil Justice put
the number of U.S.lawsuits related to asbestos injury or exposure filed to date at
600,000. But 500,000 to 2.4 million similar claims could still be filed, costing companies
an extra $145 billion to $210 billion, RAND study author Stephen Carroll said on Tuesday.
"The most optimistic thing to be said is that we're maybe halfway through the
whole thing, and we may be only 20 percent of the way,'' Carroll told a group of analysts
and executives at a seminar held by Tillinghast-Towers Perrin and the Claims Resolution
Management Corp. in New York.
At least five major corporate defendants have spent more than $1 billion on
asbestos-related claims, and asbestos litigation has infiltrated about 85 percent of the
nation's business sectors, Carroll said.
Companies ranging from oilfield services giant Halliburton Co. (NYSEHAL - news) to
media conglomerate Viacom Inc. (NYSEVIA - news) and paper products maker Georgia-Pacific
Corp. (NYSEGP - news) are fighting a wave of asbestos-related lawsuits.
While asbestos was widely used during the 1960s and 1970s, the number of claims filed
annually has jumped sharply from 10,000 to 20,000 per year in the early 1990s to three or
four times that amount in recent years.
Over 6,000 U.S. firms, along with many of their subsidiaries, are included on RAND's
preliminary list of asbestos defendants. Various studies estimate the insurance industry,
now struggling under the weight of asbestos-related claims resolution, could pay out $65
billion or more.
Miracle Turned Curse
A naturally occurring mineral that was once dubbed a "miracle'' for its strength
and fire-resistant properties, asbestos was widely used for construction and manufacturing
until scientists determined that inhaling its fibers could lead to respiratory diseases
and various types of cancer including mesothelioma.
Mesothelioma is a deadly type of cancer that affects the area surrounding the lungs and
abdomen. According to Tillinghast-Towers Perrin, the disease is found almost exclusively
in people who have had prolonged exposure to asbestos.
Still, more than 3,500 products sold in the United States contained asbestos at the
time of a 1989 study by the Environmental Protection Agency. And the mineral is still
legal today, with no effective requirements for warning labels, Tillinghast consulting
actuary Michael Angelina said.
Asbestos-related diseases can take as much as 50 years to materialize following
exposure, which means victims exposed during America's heaviest period of asbestos usage
may still develop related symptoms.
Because of this threat of exposure to a victim's health, "the propensity to sue
has clearly increased for the non-malignants,'' Angelina said. Plaintiffs' attorneys are
seeking new clients using ads in Sunday papers, screenings at workers' unions, and
Internet sites.
But the fact that asbestos-related claims have doubled does not mean the costs of
settling those claims will also double, Angelina said.
RAND's preliminary results showed nearly three-quarters of the asbestos-related claims
pending in 2001 covered litigants who had no symptoms, while the frequency of filings for
more serious asbestos-related injuries has remained relatively steady.
Settlements for non-malignant claimants often yield half the amount of money a lung
cancer victim might receive, and only one-quarter of the amount given to a more severely
stricken mesothelioma victim.
Right now, insurers in the U.S. are woefully under-reserved to pay the estimated value
of claims rolling in, said lawyers speaking at the conference.
U.S. insurers -- who have paid out about $22 billion in claims so far -- only have
about $9 billion set aside for future claims, said James Sottile of law firm Baach,
Robinson & Lewis.
That means almost every liability insurer in the United States -- including giants like
American International Group Inc. (NYSEAIG - news) and CNA Financial (NYSECNA - news) --
will have to set aside more cash to cover claims. Significant reserve increases could come
as early as this year, Sottile told Reuters.
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World Mesothelioma Epidemic Approaching Fast
Asbestos exposure in malignant mesothelioma of the pleuraa survey of 557 cases.
Bianchi C, Brollo A, Ramani L, Bianchi T, Giarelli L.
Laboratory of Pathological Anatomy, Hospital of Monfalcone, Italy.
A series of 557 malignant mesotheliomas of the pleura diagnosed in the
Trieste-Monfalcone area, Italy, in the period 1968-2000 were reviewed. The series included
492 men and 65 women, aged between 32 and 93 years (median age 69 years). Necropsy
findings were available in 456 cases (82%). Occupational histories were obtained from the
patients themselves or from their relatives by personal or telephone interviews. Routine
lung sections were examined for asbestos bodies in 442 cases. In 109 cases isolation and
counting of asbestos bodies were performed. A majority of people had histories of working
in the shipyards. Asbestos bodies were observed in lung sections in 67% of the cases. Lung
asbestos body burdens after isolation ranged between 20 bodies and about 10 millions of
bodies/g dried tissue. Latency periods (time intervals between first exposure to asbestos
and death) ranged between 14 and 75 years (mean 48.8 years, median 51.0). Latency periods
among insulators and dock workers were shorter than among the other categories. High
asbestos consumption occurred in many countries in the 1960s and in the 1970s. The data
on latency periods obtained in the present study suggest that a world mesothelioma
epidemic has to be expected in the coming decades. Ind Health 2001 Apr;39(2)161-7
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French Court Rules Firms Must Pay Asbestos Claims
Thu Feb 28, 6:01 PM ET
PARIS (Reuters) - A clutch of companies must compensate former French staff suffering
asbestos-related illness, France's top court ruled on Thursday, paving the way for
thousands more claims.
The appeals court in Paris ruled that 29 of 30 companies fighting claims, including
auto-parts maker Valeo SA, must compensate former employees.
There was no comment immediately available from Valeo.
Even though France did not ban asbestos until January 1997, long after most other
industrialised nations, the court ruled that employers were still responsible for ensuring
that their workers did not become ill after exposure to the mineral.
"In accordance with the contract of employment...the employer has a safety
obligation, especially with regard to sickness contracted by the employee due to products
made or used by the company," the court said in its ruling.
Inhaling asbestos dust can cause deadly respiratory diseases like the lung cancer
mesothelioma, which can take 40 years to develop.
The ruling sets a precedent and paves the way for thousands more claims from workers
who have suffered illness following asbestos exposure, and may also spark claims from the
relatives of deceased workers who came into contact with asbestos.
Compensation claims will initially be picked up by social security (news - web sites),
but the cost is likely to be passed on to the companies themselves.
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The Lighter Side of HMO Abuse
January 10, 2002
The trend towards lower cost Health Maintenance Organizations has many Americans
worried. Here are the "Top 21 Signs You've Joined a Cheap HMO"
- Pedal-powered dialysis machines.
- Use of antibiotics deemed an "unauthorized experimental procedure,"
- Head-wound victim in the waiting room is on the last chapter of "War and
Peace,"
- You ask for Viagra. You get a popsicle stick and duct tape.
- The exam room has a tip jar.
- You swear you saw salad tongs and a crab fork on the instrument tray just before the
anesthesia kicked in.
- "Take two leeches and call me in the morning."
- The company logo features a hand squeezing a bleeding turnip.
- Tongue depressors taste faintly of Fudgesicle.
- "Pre-natal vitamin" prescription is a box of Tic-Tacs.
- Chief Surgeon graduated from University of Benihana.
- Directions to your doctor's office include, "take a left when you enter the trailer
park,"
- Doctor listens to your heart through a paper towel tube.
- Only item listed under Preventive Care feature of coverage is "an apple a
day."
- Only participating Physicians are Dr. Fine, Dr. Howard, Dr. Fine.
- Only proctologist in the plan is "Gus" from Roto-Rooter.
- Preprinted prescription pads that say "Walk it off, you sissy."
- Your "primary care physician" is wearing the pants you gave to goodwill last
month.
- 24-hour claims line is 1-800-TUF-LUCK
- Costly MRI equipment efficiently replaced by an oversized 2-sided copier.
- Enema? The lavatory faucet swivels to face upward.
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New British Court Blow for Asbestos Sufferers
Tuesday December 11 1:47 PM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - People suffering from asbestos-related diseases were dealt a major
blow on Tuesday as a British court ruled that they did not qualify for compensation if
they had been exposed while working for more than one employer.
The Appeal Court ruling by three of the country's top judges backed previous court
rulings on the sensitive issue.
The court refused leave to appeal to the House of Lords but claimants may still renew
their application directly to the Law Lords for leave to appeal.
"If this decision stands, it means that hundreds of people each year who are
condemned to one of the most painful illnesses ever known...will now get nothing,''
solicitor Geraldine Coomb said after the ruling.
Tuesday's ruling followed six test case appeals involving claimants who have suffered
or may suffer from asbestos-induced mesothelioma after being exposed to asbestos working
for more than one employer.
"The...decision means that many hundreds of people who develop the fatal disease
of mesothelioma each year will now not be able to obtain compensation if they have been
exposed to asbestos dust in more than one employment,'' fellow solicitor Patrick Walsh
said.
"Through no fault of their own, they have been deprived of a remedy through the
courts because of a technicality, even though their employers were insured, and those
insurers took the insurance premiums,'' he added.
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Man Sets Himself on Fire to Protest Asbestos Use
SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) - A man protesting Chile's use of asbestos and its high
unemployment rate set himself on fire in front of the presidential palace Friday.
Police quickly extinguished the flames, but emergency room doctors said Eduardo Mino,
51, suffered life-threatening injuries.
Mino also wounded himself in the chest with a knife, police said.
Mino left a letter explaining he was a member of the Chileans Against Asbestos
organization and had lived for years near a factory using the substance.
Government spokesman Claudio Huepe said Chile banned the use of asbestos in July.
Mino's letter also protested ``powerful businessmen responsible for unemployment, which
brings hunger and despair,'' police said.
Scores of people were at the plaza in front of the presidential palace when Mino set
himself on fire.
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Suit Alleges Insurers' Conspiracy to Hide Asbestos
Dangers
November 27, 2001
MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — A class action lawsuit has been filed against more than a
half dozen insurance companies alleging that the insurers conspired for decades with
several asbestos defendants to conceal their knowledge of the dangers of asbestos. Wise v.
Travelers Indemnity Co., et al., No. 01C-599 (W.Va. Cir. Ct., Berkeley Cty.).
In the nearly 100-page complaint — which reads more like a comprehensive history
of asbestos litigation — the class alleges a trail of deceit dating back to the early
1900s and culminating with alleged deceptive discovery practices that forced asbestos
claimants to accept undervalued payouts for their alleged injuries.
"Defendants conspired to do unlawful acts including deception and other acts of
misconduct for the purpose of defrauding the plaintiffs and others into settling their
claims for amounts substantially less than their true value or no[sic] bringing them at
all," the class alleges.
Following a thorough chronology of the insurance industry reaction to reports of
asbestos injuries — which dates back to the early 1930s — the complaint claims
that the named insurers worked among themselves and with other asbestos manufacturers and
sellers of asbestos to misrepresent and suppress relevant information about the asbestos
dangers.
As a result, the industry has been able to argue that it was unaware of dangers
associated with asbestos exposure until the 1960s, according to the complaint. And, the
complaint alleges, they did so in an effort to injure plaintiffs including those named as
plaintiffs in the class action.
"The insurers, in defending manufacturers and sellers against asbestos claims,
hired lawyers and witnesses to represent that the knowledge of asbestos was not knowable
until the mid-to-late 1960s, to create a fact issue where none existed, while fraudulently
concealing their actual knowledge," the complaint says. "In effect, all of these
Defendants have conspired and acted in concert among themselves and with others to defraud
asbestos victims, such as Plaintiffs, of their right to fair and adequate compensation for
their asbestos-related diseases and the effect thereof through creating and perpetuating
the fraudulent state of the art defense."
Specifically, the putative class alleges that during Travelers-sponsored seminars held
in the early 1980s, defense attorneys were instructed to never admit the authenticity of
certain asbestos-related documents and to never introduce pre-1964 documents that would
undermine a state-of-the-art defense.
Travelers encouraged the fraudulent state-of-the-art defense, all the while having
first-hand knowledge that the defense was bogus, the complaint alleges.
The plaintiffs are seeking compensatory and punitive damages for participating in
violation of West Virginia state laws governing unfair settlement and trade practices,
among other things.
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California Continues National Lead in Non-Fuel Mineral
Production
Nations Only Asbestos Procucer Brings in $3.38 Billion in 2000
For the second consecutive year, California led the nation in the production of
non-fuel minerals, most notably sand and gravel with a 13.6 million ton increase in said
two minerals over 1999, and a combined $1 billion value in revenues for the two, according
to the Department of Conservation's Division of Mines and Geology and the U.S. Geological
Survey. Additionally, California remains the only state in the nation to continue
production of asbestos, boron and rare earth concentrates. California
still allows production of asbestos with the substance ranking lower than the top three
non-fuel minerals in revenue generated and already almost $3 billion of the annual
non-fuel mineral revenue accounted for.
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German Utility RGW Announces Asbestos Death Toll
Friday August 3 113 PM ET
By Claire-Louise Isted
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Germany's second biggest utility, RWE, said on Thursday that 85
of its workers had died from asbestos-related diseases since the 1980s.
The publication of the data follows a controversial report called "Deadly Dust,''
which appears in this week's issue of the German weekly magazine Der Spiegel. The report
questioned the late timing of RWE's health-checks.
"The works cooperative of precision and electrical engineers today presented data
on asbestos-related illnesses in the company,'' RWE said in a statement.
"There have been altogether 119 cases of recognised asbestos-related occupational
diseases at RWE since the 1980s, of which 85 of the affected individuals have died,'' it
added.
RWE Power and RWE coal subsidiary Rhinebraun recorded respectively a total of 60 and 59
cases of workers with asbestos-related illnesses, including asbestosis, lung cancer and
cancer of the pleura.
"These figures show that the decision to continue occupational health asbestos
prevention through a widespread programme of advice and examinations was right,'' RWE
said.
But Der Spiegel argued that RWE was prompted to start an extensive examination
programme only following the "chance'' discovery that 12 workers had died from
asbestos-related cancer between 1982 and 2001 at the firm's Niederaussem power plant.
"Why is the RWE chief Dietmar Kuhnt only now reacting, a good 10 years after
asbestos was banned because of its cancer producing effect, with such extensive
measures?,'' it said.
"Are there more than the 12 known deaths at other RWE power plants?''
Cancer through exposure to asbestos can often produce no sign of illness for up to 35
years, and because of this long latent period, an increase in these cases can be expected
until 2015, the magazine said.
Two thirds of the precision and electrical engineer cooperative's annual spending on
occupational illnesses goes to asbestos sufferers, amounting to 85.3 million marks, it
added.
The magazine anticipated RWE's explanation for the timing of the examinations as simply
the result of its recent merger with former rival VEW.
In direct reply to Der Spiegel's report, RWE issued a statement earlier this week,
explaining the health programme.
"As a consequence of the merger of RWE and VEW and the associated restructuring of
the group, regulations and processes are being harmonised in many areas, including
occupational health,'' the RWE statement said.
"In this connection, the question of dealing with former asbestos-exposed workers
has also been intensively worked on since the spring of 2001.
"The aim is, in view of the very long time before a possible malignant outbreak of
an asbestos-related disease, to guarantee a unified process in the future.''
RWE Power and RWE Rhinebraun said they will offer all current and retired workers from
the companies' plants a further examination in a staggered process to try and prevent
possible asbestos-related diseases.
"According to investigations by work cooperatives, the number of asbestos-related
illnesses show, in all RWE companies, a rather modest trend compared with other
utilities,'' RWE said.
"This additional precaution will result in at most a few isolated casesbecause
even with high asbestos dust exposure, only a small number of malignant diseases is
expected.''
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Giant French Artwork Coated with Asbestos
Thursday July 26 750 AM ET
By Nikla Gibson
PARIS (Reuters) - One of the world's largest paintings, a 6,450 square feet celebration
of science and the wonder of electricity, is coated in cancer-causing asbestos, its
curators said on Thursday.
The Museum of Modern Art in Paris said work would begin in December to remove the
mineral fiber from the back of the 250 wood panels that make up fauvist painter Raoul
Dufy's 1930s masterpiece "La Fee Electricite.''
"No other artwork has been found to contain asbestos so this procedure has no
precedent and has had to be carefully planned down to the last detail,'' a museum official
told Reuters.
"An art restorer will be on hand to oversee the work of the industrial asbestos
removal team in order to ensure they are sensitive to the particular demands of this
delicate job.''
Asbestos was a favorite insulation and fire retardant in the building industry after
World War Two. It has since been identified as a cause of lung diseases and cancer and
French law requires that all asbestos be removed.
It is not certain whether Dufy and his team of assistants treated the panels with
asbestos themselves to protect them from fire or whether the work was done after the oil
painting was moved to its present home in 1964.
The museum said that while it was obliged to remove the asbestos, the painting posed no
risk to those who have admired it. "All the tests done showed the level of airborne
asbestos was well below danger levels,'' the official said.
Dufy, who died aged 75 in 1953, painted "La Fee Electricite'' for a Paris
electricity company as the decoration for its Hall of Light at the 1937 world exhibition
in the French capital.
Each of the panels, which combine to depict the thinkers and scientists who contributed
to the discovery of electricity and the lifestyle revolution it engendered, will have to
be individually treated.
INTRICATE PROCESS
The room where the painting is on show will be closed to the public while work is under
way.
The project is expected to last seven months and the museum estimates 50 panels will
have to be removed from the wall. Le Parisien newspaper put the cost at seven million
francs ($1 million).
"The work will be carried out from behind the panels, where access is possible,
and the temperature within an isolation zone set up around the painting will be carefully
monitored,'' the official said.
"It is impossible to use water to remove the asbestos, so instead it will be done
dry by careful scraping.''
The extraordinary panorama, which chronicles the progress of science from Ancient
Greece through Michael Faraday and Andre Marie Ampere, the fathers of electricity, up to
the 1930s, took four and a half months to complete.
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WTO: Upholds French Ban on Asbestos
Tuesday March 13 3:39 AM ET
WTO Upholds French Ban on Asbestos
GENEVA (AP) - The appeals body of the World Trade Organization (news - web sites) has
upheld a ruling that France is legally entitled to ban imports of all products containing
asbestos on health grounds.
The body on Monday rejected a claim by Canada that the ban - which was imposed in
January 1997 and also includes the manufacturing, processing and sale of asbestos within
France - was illegal because it damaged Canadian economic interests and was a barrier to
free trade. Canada is the main exporter of asbestos to France.
``We are disappointed with the Appellate Body report,'' said International Trade
Minister Pierre Pettigrew.
Canada had appealed against the original ruling, issued last September, which said that
legitimate public health concerns were sufficient to justify the ban.
The appeals panel concluded that France was correct to decide that asbestos fibers and
fibers made of substitute materials were not ``like products.'' Therefore imports of the
two products did not necessarily have to be treated the same.
That ruling went further than the original panel's decision, which said that the fibers
were alike but had accepted that asbestos could be banned entirely on health grounds.
Canada claims that chrysotile asbestos, which is included in the ban, is not dangerous
for human health if used carefully. It said asbestos-related diseases, such as lung
cancer, are caused by the other form of asbestos - amphibole - which is already widely
banned, including in Canada.
The European Union (news - web sites), which represents France in legal disputes in the
WTO, claimed that both types of asbestos were dangerous and that it was not possible to
ensure that it was always used safely.
Canada is the world's third largest producer of chrysotile asbestos with annual sales
valued at $134 million. Production is centered in Quebec.
Canada had hoped to use a ruling in its favor to put pressure on the European Union as
a whole. Brussels approved an EU-wide asbestos ban in 1999 and it is due to take effect in
2005.
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WTO: French Asbestos Ban Is Legal
Monday September 18 5:39 PM ET
By NAOMI KOPPEL, Associated Press Writer
GENEVA (AP) - The World Trade Organization (news - web sites) ruled Monday that a
French ban on the import of all products containing asbestos is legal on health grounds.
A WTO panel of experts rejected a claim by Canada that the ban - which was imposed in
January 1997 and also includes the manufacturing, processing and sale of asbestos within
France - was illegal because it damaged Canadian economic interests and was a barrier to
free trade. Canada is the main exporter of asbestos to France.
Canada immediately announced that it would appeal.
The three-person panel, headed by William Macey of New Zealand, heard evidence from
both sides and sought the advice of U.S. and Australian experts in asbestos-related
diseases.
Canada claimed that chrysotile asbestos, which is included in the ban, is not dangerous
for human health if used carefully. It said asbestos-related diseases, such as lung
cancer, are caused by the other form of asbestos - amphibole - which is already widely
banned, including in Canada.
The European Union - which represents France in legal disputes in the WTO - claimed
that both types of asbestos were equally dangerous and that it was not possible to ensure
that it was always used safely.
In their 671-page report, the panel members ruled that France was in principle breaking
trade rules because the ban favored producers of fibers which are used as substitutes for
asbestos, but that the ban is acceptable on health grounds.
The ruling is a blow for Canada, which had hoped to use a ruling in its favor to put
pressure on the European Union as a whole. Brussels approved an EU-wide asbestos ban last
year and it is due to take effect in 2005.
Canada is the world's third largest producer of chrysotile asbestos with annual sales
of $134 million.
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Official: Agency Knew of Asbestos
BOZEMAN, Mont. (AP) - The Environmental Protection Agency knew more than 15 years ago
that asbestos fibers were killing people in the small Montana town of Libby but ``dropped
the ball,'' a newspaper reported Wednesday.
The Bozeman Daily Chronicle quoted Christopher Weis, an EPA toxicologist, who said the
agency's headquarters was aware of the situation but never passed the information along to
the regional office in Denver - which is now heading up the EPA response in Libby.
Nearly 200 deaths related to asbestos exposure have been reported in the Libby area,
where a mine produced thousands of tons of asbestos as a byproduct of vermiculite, which
is used in insulation, as a gardening additive and in other products.
The newspaper said Weis told a University of Colorado environmental journalism
conference last week that an EPA study at the W.R. Grace vermiculite mine in the mid-1980s
showed death projections of ``almost 100 percent'' for miners there.
``EPA is reeling in shock, the whole agency, as to how this slipped through the
cracks,'' Weis told that gathering, the newspaper said. ``We dropped the ball.''
Weis did not return phone calls from The Associated Press. The EPA's regional office in
Denver also did not return calls seeking comment.
Last November, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported the hazards in Libby in a series
of stories. Those stories surprised EPA officials in Denver, said Weis, who was part of
the federal response team in Libby.
Further investigation has shown that the initial tally of the death toll in the town of
2,700 people may have been low, Weis said, because asbestos-related problems are
notoriously diagnosed inaccurately.
The mine's mill spewed as much as 5,000 tons of asbestos a day and other fibers
apparently were brought home on the dusty clothing of workers. EPA is sampling air, soil
and other materials in Libby to find out just how extensive the contamination is.
June 1, 2000
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Report: Asbestos Found in Crayons
SEATTLE (AP) - A newspaper reported Tuesday that two labs found asbestos in crayons,
sending public-health and art-industry officials scrambling to allay concerns about
possible health risks. A government agency said it would conduct its own testing.
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported that two government-certified labs found
asbestos in crayons made by Crayola, Prang and Rose Art. Of 40 crayons that were tested
from the three major brands, 32 were contaminated above trace levels, the newspaper said.
``We were very surprised to even see any of this in any crayon product at all,'' said
John Harris, director of Lab-Cor, one of the two laboratories the newspaper used for the
tests.
The Post-Intelligencer said the asbestos ``is most likely a contaminant of the talc''
used to strengthen crayons. The findings do not shed light on whether there is a
public health threat, however. Controlled experiments would be required to determine any
possible risk from airborne particles, Harris said.
There are no known reports of anyone getting sick from using or making crayons. And
asbestos-related illness tends to result from exposure to airborne fibers - usually in an
industrial setting.
The manufacturers said they did not believe their products posed risks, but that they
were looking into it. Government officials also were investigating.
``We have never heard of this being a problem with crayons before,'' said spokesman
Russ Rader of the Consumer Product Safety Commission in Washington, D.C.
``We are going to be doing our own testing of crayons to determine whether there is
asbestos in the crayons or not,'' Rader said.
Neither the safety commission, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry in
Atlanta nor the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health were aware of any
reports of asbestos-related health problems among people who make crayons.
Virtually all asbestos-related illness affects the lungs. Little is known about illness
from ingestion, though a federal task force in 1987 said such exposure ``should be
eliminated whenever possible.'' It can take decades for disease from asbestos exposure to
develop.
Ronald F. Dodson, a longtime asbestos researcher at the University of Texas Health
Center in Tyler, noted that ``some of us who are a little older had our shot at crayons
... and we've not picked up any correlations (to asbestos-related illness) in youngsters
that ate it back then.''
He said the risk from asbestos in any context is ``correlated with it being fibrous and
being free.'' If the fibers are stable or bound - in wax, for instance - they're ``not a
problem,'' Dodson said.
Industry officials - and the industry's Art & Creative Materials Institute, which
certifies art supplies for safety - disputed the newspaper's lab findings.
Binney & Smith, which makes Crayolas, is certain its crayons are asbestos free,
said spokeswoman Tracey Muldoon Moran at company headquarters in Easton, Pa. But
the newspaper report ``is certainly a concern for us,'' Moran said.
``We truly do not believe our products pose a health hazard, but we have begun to
investigate alternatives'' to talc, Moran said.
Dixon Ticonderoga, which makes Prang Crayons in Sandusky, Ohio, also takes safety
seriously, said Chief Operating Officer Ronald Shaffer at headquarters in Heathrow, Fla.
While its crayons have been certified asbestos free, he told the newspaper the company
is working with its talc suppliers, ``trying to see what they know is in it.''
Rose Art Industries in Livingston, N.J., could not be reached for comment.
Debbie Fanning, executive director of the Art and Creative Materials Institute in
Hanson, Mass., was adamant that there is no asbestos in the talc - nonasbestiform
tremolite - used in crayons. ``His testing results must be incorrect,'' she said of
the labs used by the newspaper. ``In children's materials, we do not allow any ingredients
at a level that would be a hazard.''
May 23, 2000
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Environmental exposure to tremolite and respiratory
cancer in New Caledonia: a case-control study.
Am J Epidemiol 2000 Feb 1;151(3):259-65
Luce D, Bugel I, Goldberg P,
A case-control study on respiratory cancers was conducted in New Caledonia (South
Pacific), where a high incidence of malignant pleural mesothelioma had been observed. The
disease pattern suggested an environmental exposure to asbestos. The first results showed
that, in some areas, tremolite asbestos derived from local outcroppings was used as
whitewash (locally named "po"). All cases diagnosed between 1993 and 1995
(including 15 pleural mesotheliomas, 228 lung cancers, and 23 laryngeal cancers) and 305
controls were included in the study. Detailed information on past or present use of the
whitewash, residential history, smoking, diet, and occupation was collected. The risk of
mesothelioma was strongly associated with the use of the whitewash (odds ratio (OR) =
40.9; 95% confidence interval (CI): 5.15, 325). All Melanesian cases had been exposed.
Among Melanesian women, exposure to the whitewash was associated with an increased risk of
lung cancer (OR = 4.89; 95% CI: 1.13, 21.2), and smokers exposed to po had an
approximately ninefold risk (OR = 9.26; 95% CI: 1.72, 49.7) compared with women who never
smoked and had never used the whitewash. In contrast, no association was noted between
exposure to po and lung cancer risk among Melanesian men, probably because of lower
exposure levels. Among non-Melanesians, the numbers of exposed subjects were too small to
assess the effect of exposure to po. There was no indication of elevated risks for the
other cancer sites.
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New York Executive and Company Sentenced for Illegal
Asbestos Removal
Date: 1999/11/19
Author: GROUP PRESS
202-260-4355 <PRESS@epamail.epa.gov>
Salvatore Napolitano of Brooklyn, N.Y., was sentenced on
Nov. 9, by the U.S. District Court in New Haven, Conn., to serve 15 months in prison, pay
$19, 034 in fines and restitution and serve three years of supervised release after
completing his jail term. The defendant's company, ECCO Construction Inc., was sentenced
to five years probation and prohibited from working in construction projects involving
asbestos. The defendants had pleaded guilty to conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act in
connection with the illegal removal of asbestos- containing material during the conversion
of a former Y.M.C.A. building in New Haven into an upscale apartment development in 1997.
As a result of the conspiracy, untrained and undocumented workers from Mexico were used to
remove asbestos from boilers, piping and floor coverings at the building. The workers were
locked in the building and were not provided with equipment to protect them from inhaling
asbestos fibers. As a result of this crime, asbestos fibers were released into the air at
the construction site where workers and others could inhale them. Inhalation of asbestos
fibers can cause lung cancer, a lung disease known as "asbestosis," and
mesothelioma which is a cancer of the chest and abdominal cavities. Asbestos filled
garbage bags were also illegally disposed of in various locations around New Haven. The
case was investigated by EPA's Criminal Investigation Division and the Connecticut
Department of Environmental Protection, and was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney for the
District of Connecticut.
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Asbestos Haunts Montana Town
Sunday November 21 12:13 AM ET
SEATTLE (AP) - Asbestos-related illnesses linked to a
closed vermiculite mine have killed at least 192 people over the past 40 years in Libby,
Mont., the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported.
Doctors and townsfolk say at least 375 more have been
diagnosed with ailments that were likely caused by tremolite asbestos - a rare and
extremely toxic form of asbestos released by mining for vermiculite, a mineral that
expands when wet and is used for insulation and gardening.
In addition to miners who were sickened in the town of
about 2,500 people, their relatives also have been stricken through exposure to dust
brought home on the miners' clothes, the newspaper reported Thursday and Friday.
Most contracted their terminal diseases - asbestosis, lung
cancer and mesothelioma, a cancer of the lung lining - years ago, when the Zonolite
Mountain mine released more than two tons of asbestos into the air per day, six days a
week.
John Wardell, coordinator of the Environmental Protection
Agency's operation in Montana, said that as a result of the Post-Intelligencer reports,
the EPA would investigate the situation in Libby.
The mine in northwest Montana was closed nine years ago by
by Columbia, Md.-based W.R. Grace Co.
"Obviously, we feel we met our obligation to our
workers and to the community,'' said Jay Hughes, Grace's senior litigation counsel. Hughes
said Grace spent millions to upgrade safety conditions and reduce dust at the mine.
The company was the focus of the book and movie ``A Civil
Action,'' about a case concerning acute lymphocytic leukemia cases in Massachusetts that
were linked to chemicals in drinking water.
Miners and their families from Libby are the victims named
in 187 asbestos-related lawsuits filed against Grace. So far, 67 have been resolved, with
Grace either settling out of court or found liable and ordered to pay damages.
The Post-Intelligencer counted the 192 deaths, dating to
1959, from court records and from interviews with families and doctors who are treating
victims.
The Daily Inter Lake newspaper of Kalispell, Mont., said in
its own report last Sunday that by 1959 one-third of workers at the plant had abnormal
lung x-rays.
Respirators were provided in the 1950s, but rules requiring
their use were not enforced, workers' lawsuits say.
State officials say they're confident that no asbestos is
blowing off the mine site but admit it would not meet today's reclamation standards, which
require covering thousands of tons of asbestos dust and mine waste with clean soil.
The Post-Intelligencer had two EPA-certified labs test five
soil samples collected from the area.
Tremolite asbestos fibers were found in four of the samples
- all at levels higher than those considered safe by the EPA and the Occupational Safety
and Health Administration.
"More sophisticated testing would have to be done, but
the levels (found in the samples) indicate that if it were a workplace, the workers
picking huckleberries in that area would have to wear a respirator and a protective
suit,'' said EPA official Armina Nolan.
A Grace spokesman would not discuss whether hazards remain
at the site.
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R&D Magazine Lists Technology Winners
Monday September 20, 4:32 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
OAK BROOK, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 20, 1999--The ``Oscars of Invention,'' R&D
Magazine's annual list of the 100 most significant technological breakthroughs of the
year, feature winners that tackle several environmental issues, new medical diagnostic
tools and several high tech products categorized as "smaller-faster-more
powerful."
The prizes, to be awarded Sept. 23 at the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry, are
the most prestigious in applied research, according to Tim Studt, editor of R&D, a
Cahners publication.
The Chicago Tribune has called the competition, now in its 37th year, ``the Oscars of
Invention.'' Past winners have included anti-lock brakes, ATMs, fax machines and halogen
lights.
Among the 1999 winners:-- DMA, a chemical developed by W.R. Grace & Co. (Columbia,
Md.) and Brookhaven National Laboratory (Long Island, N.Y.) that can penetrate and digest
asbestos, leaving behind a residue that is safe and fireproof.--
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EU Commission Confirms Ban on White Asbestos over Canada's
Idiotic Objections
BRUSSELS, July 27, 1999 (Reuters) - The European Commission said on Tuesday it had
banned white asbestos, the only type of the fire-proof fibre still allowed in the European
Union, after scientists said safer alternatives had now been found.
The decision was based on evidence that all forms of asbestos are carcinogens, causing
asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma, or cancer of the lining of the lung. Nearly
6,700 Europeans died of asbestos-related illnesses in 1995, according to EU statistical
office Eurostat.
The decision to go ahead with the ban angered Canada, a major asbestos producer, which
is already challenging France's domestic ban in the World Trade Organisation.
The decision will ban white asbestos in cement products such as pipes and roofing,
brake and clutch linings for lorries, seals and gaskets and a number of other specialised
uses from the beginning of 2005, the Commission said in a statement.
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Europe Proposes Asbestos Ban, Canada Worried
BRUSSELS, Aug 20 (Reuters) - The European Commission is drafting
legislation to ban chrysotile or `"white'' asbestos in all 15 European Union nations,
a leading official said.
"The Commission is...preparing a draft proposal for a
European-wide ban on the marketing and use of chrysotile asbestos and asbestos-containing
products...,'' industry commissioner Martin Bangemann said in an answer dated July 24 to a
question from a member of the European Parliament.
Bangemann noted that 14 products containing white asbestos were already
banned by EU legislation and nine EU countries had already introduced unilateral bans.
"This represents a significant disruption to the (EU) internal
market and requires a solution at (EU) level,'' Bangemann said.
Britain on Tuesday became the latest EU nation to say it was also
considering a ban. The country's Health and Safety Commission said it would start
consulting interested groups about introducing such a ban in 2001.
Blue and brown asbestos, fibrous materials used extensively in
buildings in the 1960s and 70s for their fire resistant characteristics, are already
banned throughout the EU because of evidence they cause lung cancer and other respiratory
damage.
A spokesman for Canada's EU mission said on Thursday it was watching
the developments closely.
Canada is the world's second largest producer of white asbestos behind
Russia. The other major producing nations are Brazil, South Africa, Swaziland and
Zimbabwe.
In May Canada went to the World Trade Organisation to challenge a
French ban on chrysotile asbestos introduced on January 1, 1997.
France was Canada's largest market for the product, which is used in
the construction industry and is found in brake pads.
"We are certainly aware of the situation within the European
Commission,'' the Canadian spokesman said. ``We will continue to follow closely what's
happening.''
"There seem at the moment to be different views and they are
trying to come to a common view on this,'' he added, noting Bangemann himself said details
of the ban remained to be worked out and were subject to consultations with EU member
states, which in the past have shown themselves divided on the issue.
At an EU social affairs ministers meeting in April, Greece, Spain and
Portugal voiced objections to a complete ban.
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UK Set To Ban 'Killer Dust'
BBC, Aug. 20, 1998.
Plans to virtually ban the use of white asbestos, which kills thousands
of workers every year, have been published by health and safety chiefs.
The UK's Health and Safety Commission is proposing to ban the use of
the so-called 'killer dust', apart from in a few cases where substitute materials are not
available.
Consultations will be held over three months from September and the
action is expected to come into force next summer.
The use of brown and blue asbestos has been banned for some time, but
white asbestos is still widely used in buildings.
Campaigners have been pushing for a ban on the dust since figures
showed that as many as 3,000 people die from asbestos-related diseases each year.
A report commissioned by the HSC estimates that the death toll could
rise still further past the year 2000 and could reach 10,000 a year by 2020.
Among those most at risk are builders, plumbers and shipyard workers
who come into contact with the dust.
But it has also been used in schools and hospitals, posing a threat to
children, teachers and nurses.
General Secretary John Monks said: "The death toll will continue
to rise well into the next century, but at least we now know that the plague of
asbestos-related diseases might be coming to an end."
Most white asbestos is imported from Canada, Russia and South Africa.
The TUC says it will contact the Canadian High Commissioner in London
to urge his country to accept a ban on the use of white asbestos. see
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/health/latest_news/newsid_153000/153624.stm
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2,800 Americans Projected to Die of MM in Year 2000
June 15, 1998
According to Price Associates, Inc. of Washington, DC, "the
mesothelioma rate for US males exhibits an increasing trend throughout the 1970s and early
1980s. The trend has been attributed to occupational exposure in the shipbuilding industry
during World War II, in manufacturing, and in building construction. Incidence data
(1973-1992) from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program were used to
investigate current trends in age-adjusted and age-specific mesothelioma rates. An age and
birth-cohort model was used to project both lifetime probabilities of mesothelioma by
cohort and the annual number of cases expected over the next 70 years.
The current trend in female rates is flat. The projected average annual
number of female cases is 500. For males, the age-adjusted mesothelioma rate is increasing
solely due to the age group 75 years and over, albeit at a declining growth rate.. The
pattern of rates reflected in the age and birth-cohort model suggests a peak in the annual
number of mesothelioma cases for males at 2,300 before the year 2000. The number of male
cases then will drop during the next 50-60 years toward 500.
These trends mirror the US trend in raw asbestos consumption and a
reduction in workplace airborne asbestos levels. Am J Epidemiol, 145(3):211-8 1997 Feb 1.
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JM Asbestos Storms Chicago Beaches
Tuesday March 17 10:27 AM EST
Second asbestos cleanup planned at park
CHICAGO, March 17 (UPI) _ Another cleanup is in the works for the Illinois State Beach
Park near Zion, where asbestos has been washing ashore.
Park workers found a two-foot piece of asbestos pipe during the weekend, raising fears
last week's storm may have churned up more debris since an earlier sweep along the park's
six-mile Lake Michigan shoreline.
Park Superintendent Robert Grosso told the Chicago Sun-Times Tuesday that when the sand
was cleaned from the pipe, a gasket inside bore an imprint reading ``Johns Manville 107.''
The south end of the park borders a Johns-Manville industrial site encompassing a
nearly-closed factory and a Superfund asbestos waste site capped in 1991.
Park officials have reportedly been finding asbestos-laden materials along the
lakeshore since July. State-hired contractors wearing protective ``moon suits'' cleaned
the shore earlier this month, finding some 300 pieces of asbestos debris. They'll return
to the park this week for another sweep.
Grosso says workers are plotting the location of each piece of debris with a satellite
system to see if there's any pattern that could help investigators pin down the source.
Department of Natural Resources spokeswoman Carol Knowles told the paper environmental
contractors next week will begin testing water, soil and air saples to determine whether
the debris poses a health risk.
