Document 82kb41vVGLpx2V4J8JOB6j7Ym

FILE NAME: Drywall Spackling Compounds (DWSC) DATE: 1974 Apr 2 DOC#: DWSC047 DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION: Letter from Union Carbide to National Gypsum Co. RE Meeting with Dr. Selikoff with Meeting Minutes Attached (March 29, 1974) Plaintiffs Exhibit S-UC-177 r UNION CARBIDE CORPORATION MINING & METALS DIVISION P.0. BOX 579 TH E DISCOVERY COMPANY NIAGARA FALLS. N. Y. 14302 TEL: 716-278-3376 A p ril 2, 1974 Mr. F. H. Zimmerman National Gypsum Company 325 Delaware Avenue B uffalo, NY 14202 Dear Frank: The report of our meeting with Dr. S e lik o ff which we discussed this morning is attached. I don't see any reason you can 't discuss i t with Ed Fenner and I also agree that any sort of general d istrib u tio n via the AIA/NA is probably not wise. Best regards H.B. Rhodes HBR/cam Attachment Mining and Metals Division Niagara F a lls , NY 14302 A p ril 2, 1974 MEMORANDUM V ISIT AT MT. SINAI HOSPITAL, DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY MEDICINE TO DISCUSS ASBESTOS EXPOSURES OF TAPE JOINT WORKERS MARCH 29, 1974 Those Present: For Mt. S in a i: Dr. Irving J. Se liko ff Dr. Arthur N. Rohl For AIA/NA: Mr. Frank Zimmerman (National Gypsum) Mr. Joe Volk (National Gypsum, Ind. Hygiene) Dr. H.B. Rhodes (Union Carbide) The meeting lasted about labours followed by a short tour of th e ir f a c il it it e s . I t was a pleasant low-key discussion. We mainly listen ed and asked leading questions. Mt. Sinai F a c ilit it e s Their f a c il it it e s , although quite crowed and cluttered due to an impending move to new quarters, contain an impressive array of new sophisticated equipment. They are set up to obtain the following information on any chosen p a rticle in a f ie ld : 1. Electron micrograph photo. 2. X-ray diffraction pattern-(crystal structure) 3. Chemical analysis (electron probe)? 4. Scanning E.M.photograph. The procedure is rapid and routine so i t can be applied to large numbers of p a rticle s. Studies of Tape Jo in t Workers Or. Rohl has visite d about 30 work site s and plans to cover about 20 more. They are co llectin g mainly 20 minute samples in the breathing zone of men sanding. Some background samples in the areas be being sanded are also being obtained. Dust counts (breathing zone) ranged fro - 1-20 fib e rs. About 40% were in the 1-5 range, 40% in the 5+-10 range, and 20% were over 10 but less thanv20. One count obtained during wet-out of a dry mix gave the very high figu re of 59 fib e rs/cc. The counts were made by the regular 0SHA procedure. Dr. Rohl in siste d that they could t e ll the difference between a mica flake and as bestos and that only true fibers were counted. There does not seem to be any reason to doubt the v a lid ity of th e ir counts. About 50 X-rays of tape jo in t workers have been examined so fa r. Dr. S e lik o ff reserves the rig h t to change his opinion when a la rg e r sample has been studied but feels he has enough to arrive at the following assessment of the problem: 1. About the same percentage of p ositive findings (fib r o s is ) occurs as was found previously with insulation workers. 2. Generally the lung involvement is less severe than with insulation workers. The point was made that the counts represented c e ilin g values fo r a sanding operation that generally lasted less than two hours per working day. This meant that a good majority of the exposures measured met the present OSHA standards and roughly h a lf met the 1976 standards. They f e lt that i t would be too confusing to attempt to e s t i mate TWA values. I t was also not appropriate for them to get involved with statements regarding adm inistrative work practices in the in dustry. As w ill be duscussed la te r, they also do not feel that the current OSHA Standards have s u ffic ie n t v a lid ity to be worth considering so there was re a lly no reason to look at TWA's. The point was also made that the tape jo in t workers with a long h isto ry in the business have been subjected to a number of years of regular high exposures while wetting out dry-mix compound. The x-ray data thus represents a combination of this exposure with consi derably lower exposures during sanding. Dr. S e lik o ff agreed that th is was a problem but did not see any way to so rt out the exposures. They are-apparently not going to worry about i t in th e ir presentation of the data. Vlork Practices Dr. S e lik o ff made a strong push fo r work practices on the basis that there is no p ractical way to monitor the thousands of construction s ite s throughout the country. Work practices in his mind should control the dust levels to zero or very close i t , not merely meet the allowable TWA. Dr. Rohl was asked what recommendations he would make for work practices on the basis of his fie ld testing experience. Dr. S e lik o ff immediately stated that they did not have the background to make any recommendations beyond that of co n tro llin g the dust at it s source, i. e . remove the asbestos from the mud. He stated that one manufacturer had to ld them they were going to do th is and seemed to be under the impression that i t did not present any serious technical problems. The function of asbestos in the mud was explained together with the very real technical problems in finding a replacement that would give a mud with competitive performance. I f i t were easy i t would have already been done. We mentioned the use of respirators to control exposure during sanding. Dr. S e lik o ff f e lt that respirators did a reasonable job and did not seem opposed to th is approach. He also indicated that i f i t should be adopted and education program through the unions might be p ra c tic a l. S i l i c a Dust During Sanding Dr. Rohl has analyzed the dust samples collected for s i l i c a and in at le a st some cases has found quite high le v e ls . They do not seem to be p a rtic u a lrly alarmed over this find in g but do plan to look into i t further. Some d e fin ite statement may be expected in about 6 months. Acceptable TWA lim its Dr. S e lik o ff was most emphatic that "The chance that the two fib e r lim it w ill survive in the new regulations is remote". He states that there is lots of evidence to show i t is too high and nothing to show that i t is adequate even to protect against asbestosis. This position merely reiterates other public statements he has made. The need for AIA/NA to be prepared with their own documented positi is obvious and well-known. Prohibition of Smoking Frank Zimmerman asked whether the evidence s t i l l supported a regulation of "no smoking" in areas where workers are exposed to air~ borne asbestos fib e rs. Dr. S e lif o f f is stro n gly in favor of th is posi tion and w ill supply backup evidence i f requested. H.B.Rhodes March 29, 1974 Blind Notes to Mr. Thurber and Mr. Myers 1. Frank Zimmerman mentioned that one the biggest problems with the removal of asbestos has to do with can s t a b ilit y in cold weather. Without asbestos there is a pronounced tendency fo r an inch or so of water to co lle c t at the top of the can. This is very d if f ic u lt to s t i r back in . 2. Much of Dr. Rohl's test work appeared to be with United States Gypsum muds (ready mix) in the New York area. I was unable to get any confirmation but i t is either they or National Gypsums' Matteson f L . pTarrtHihat told Dr. S e lik o ff about the asbestos-free mud. I hwve"'as'fced""-- Mr. Byrne to have Mr. Norris ta lk about the subject again with United States Gypsum at an appropriate time.