Thread: Building materials post 1980 STILL contain asbestos?

A disturbing article from the EPA leads me to believe that most building materials containing asbestos can continue to be imported, manufactured and distributed in the U.S. The EPA article can be viewed here.

Just looking for someone to make sense of this and break it down for us common folk. I'll admit the article IS a bit hard to follow.

Thanks for looking,

Darin

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Canada still exports Asbestos.

Originally Posted by Darin Redding

A disturbing article from the EPA leads me to believe that most building materials containing asbestos can continue to be imported, manufactured and distributed in the U.S. The EPA article can be viewed here.

Just looking for someone to make sense of this and break it down for us common folk. I'll admit the article IS a bit hard to follow.

Thanks for looking,

Darin

Nothing disturbing about that article/notice, it simply confirms what has been said in many places before, including here, most recently by CaoimhÃ*n P. Connell.

What was widely believe to be basically an outright and overall ban on asbestos is really only a limited ban on certain uses.

Hopefully, by your posting that information again more people will become familiar with the asbestos ban limitations. Thank you.

Had an asbestos remediation person speak at association meeting last year.

Asbestos is not completley banned. It is still used in lots of materials and only has to be disclosed if used in certain quantities. It has many useful properties and is the best choice for many products.

FYI: They still put lead in paint too; radon in Brazilian granite counters, sulfur dioxide in drywall, formaldehyde in everything, bullsh*t in the news, more bullsh*t all over the TV and radio programs . . .

What's a mother to do?

So as I understand it:

New uses of asbestos are banned, but if the formulation and/or manufacturing processes included the use of asbestos prior to 1980 then these products can continue to be used to this day (irregardless of the amount of asbestos present). ???

Next, for other products, if the asbestos content happens to be below 'their' threshold for these products, then disclosure on the packaging and/or MSDS is not required??? .

Is this sorta like "it's not a lie, I just didn't offer the full truth".

What a box of bull$hit they are selling here.

Is this sorta like "it's not a lie, I just didn't offer the full truth".

What a box of bull$hit they are selling here.

DR: The purest high-grade BS.

Originally Posted by Darin Redding

Next, for other products, if the asbestos content happens to be below 'their' threshold for these products, then disclosure on the packaging and/or MSDS is not required??? .

Is this sorta like "it's not a lie, I just didn't offer the full truth".

No different than everything else, including FDA food labeling.

When you see something which says "FAT FREE" or "Fat: 0 grams" that CAN mean there is no fat, but it CAN ALSO mean the fat is less than 0.5 grams. 0.5 grams and it is labeled as 0.5 grams. However, 0.49 grams and it is labeled as "FAT FREE".

So, you eat 20 "FAT FREE" food things, guess what, you just ate *10* grams of fat ... could be, and likely was.

Originally Posted by Jerry Peck

No different than everything else, including FDA food labeling.

When you see something which says "FAT FREE" or "Fat: 0 grams" that CAN mean there is no fat, but it CAN ALSO mean the fat is less than 0.5 grams. 0.5 grams and it is labeled as 0.5 grams. However, 0.49 grams and it is labeled as "FAT FREE".

So, you eat 20 "FAT FREE" food things, guess what, you just ate *10* grams of fat ... could be, and likely was.

JP: I like the statistics on how many insect body parts, frass, chemicals, poisons, et al. that are in each bite of food we take. Like looking at a dust mite with a microsope. Scary stuff!

Originally Posted by A.D. Miller

JP: I like the statistics on how many insect body parts, frass, chemicals, poisons, et al. that are in each bite of food we take. Like looking at a dust mite with a microsope. Scary stuff!

Or ... all those things plus fecal matter all the "natural" bottled water everyone buys ...

JP had to go and bring up poop. Great, and it's about lunch time here

Originally Posted by Jerry Peck

Or ... all those things plus fecal matter all the "natural" bottled water everyone buys ...

Nothing more natural than fecal matter!

Here's what I don't get about asbestos. Untold millions of cars have been spraying asbestos dust into the great outdoors for decades every time the brakes are applied, and yet we don't seem to have an epidemic of asbestos related disease among the general population. I know it's "outdoors", which helps, but how many hours have we all spent in our lives in heavy traffic breathing whatever happens to be emitted from the cars around us?

Originally Posted by John Arnold

Nothing more natural than fecal matter!

Here's what I don't get about asbestos. Untold millions of cars have been spraying asbestos dust into the great outdoors for decades every time the brakes are applied, and yet we don't seem to have an epidemic of asbestos related disease among the general population. I know it's "outdoors", which helps, but how many hours have we all spent in our lives in heavy traffic breathing whatever happens to be emitted from the cars around us?

JA: Ms. Tomlin would be proud of you.

In heavy traffic we're all stopped, so no spinny, no dusty, no breathy, no asbestosis.

Good point though JA. I heard it cited somewhere that spending an hour on a busy downtown street exposes you and your lungs to about as much asbestos as one would expect in a year by breathing air at normal concentrations. Might be rubbish but I still tell the story anyhow because I like it.