Document LVK0wd5009V4Zrn96JaJ42Jg

ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH TASK FORCE H. M. Ball T. H. Davison, M. D. J. E. Hesse E. M. Fenner H. M. Jackson J. B. Jobe IC. V. Lindell A. B. Marchant F. L. Pundsack W. P. Raines Ivan Sabourin C. L. Sheckler F. J. Solon, Jr. A. C. Smith R. R. Standel M. M. Swetonic Carl Thompson W. L. VanDerbeek G. W. Wright, M. D. PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT CAP-1597 CC: W. R. Goodwin W.' P. Gibbons N. W. Hendry J. R. M. Hutcheson D. Poutiatine A. A. Cross J. L. Goodman Dr. S."Holmes W. R. Janes Dr. P. ,V. Pelnar Michael Howe The Cape Asbestos Co. Raybestos-Manhattan Turner Brothers Asbestos Co. J-M Great Britain IOEH Turner & Newall CAPCO KIN 0001361 AS BESTOS/HEALTH September 10, 1971 Attached are documents on this subject, accumulated since our July 15 mailing. I. MEDICAL PAPERS OF INTEREST AND IMPORTANCE (Evaluation Sheets Only)* "Possible Biological Importance of Fibre Diameters of South African Amphiboles," NATURE, July 2, 1971, V. Timbrell, D. M. Griffiths and F. D. Pooley. "Asbestos and Mesothelioma in Man," NATURE, July 2, 1971, J. S. Harington, J. C. Gilson and J. C. Wagner. "Determination of Asbestos in Ambient Air," presented at Inter national Symposium on Identification and Measurement of Envir onmental Pollutants, Ottawa, Ont., June 14-17, 1971, R. J. Thompson and G. B. Morgan. "Cigarette Smoking, Asbestos and Pulmonary Fibrosis," AMERICAN REVIEW OF RESPIRATORY DISEASE, August 1971, W. Weiss. "Mesothelioma of the Pleura," IRISH JOURNAL OF MEDICAL SCIENCE, October 1970, H. T. Hitchcock. "The Prevalence of Radiographic Abnormalities," JOURNAL OF OCCU PATIONAL MEDICINE', August 1971, A. N. M. Nasr, T. Ditchek and P. A. Scholtens. "Asbestos Fibres in Beverages and Drinking Water," NATURE, July 30, 1971, H. M. Cunningham and R. Pontrefact. II. MEDICAL PAPERS OF SOME INTEREST (Evaluation Sheets Only) ' "Two Cases of Malignant Mesothelioma after exposure to Asbestos AMERICAN REVIEW OF RESPIRATORY DISEASE, June 1971, P. Champion "Primary Malignant tumors of the Pleura," MINERVA CHIRURGICA (ITALY), February 15, 1971, C. Arisi, L. Colombo and A. De Medi *Entire paper attached to sets addressed to those individuals who have asked to see the full text of important papers. V CAPCO KIN 0001362 "Alkalinity and the Coagulation Produced by Chrysotile Asbestos," L'UNION MEDICALE DU CANADA, April 1971, M. Cosette, J. Lemond and D. G. Massey. "Mesothelioma (Coelothelioma) of the Atrioventricular Node," CHEST, May 1971, R. T. La Fargue, A. M. Hand and M. Lev. III. MEDICAL PAPERS OF MINOR INTEREST A list describing each paper. IV. MINUTES OF AIA/NA BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING Attached are copies of the minutes from two recent meetings of the Asbestos Information Association/North America Board of Directors, on August 11 and August 24. V. VI. ASBESTOS IN WOMEN'S COATS On August 9, the American Public Health Association issued a second press release on the "asbestos in women's coats" controversy. In it, the Association chided the Food and Drug Administration for its 'failure to take immediate action on the situation. A copy of the press release is attached. A number of stories appeared in the press as a result of the release, but only one newspaper, WOMEN'S WEAR DAILY, checked with the FDA as to the accuracy of the Association's accusations. A copy of the subsequent WOMEN'S WEAR DAILY story is attached. It has the headline "Doctors Say Asbestos in Coats Is No Hazard." Also attached is a clip on the subject from "FAMILY HEALTH." SPRAYED ASBESTOS On July 13, the New York City Council unanimously approved the City's new air pollution control code. It contains a ban of asbestos-containing spray insulations. A copy of an article on the code from the July 14 NEW YORK TIMES is attached. The following Sunday (July 18) another story on asbestos and the code appeared in the TIMES. It was written by Earl Ubell, who has reported on the asbestos/ health problem in the past. A copy of this article is also attached. Also included is an article from the from the Vancouver, B.C. JOURNAL OF COMMERCE" covering an uproar over asbestos spraying in that City. - More - V CAPCO KIN 0001363 ASBESTOS-CEMENT PIPE In response to questions raised by the Marlboro Township,' New Jersey, Municipal Utilities Authority as to the advisa bility from a health standpoint of specifying asbestoscement pipe for a new municipal water system, J-M'was asked to appear at a meeting' of the Authority on August 4 to present evidence on the subject. A previous mailing covered the meeting. Attached is a copy of an article from the ASBURY PARK newspaper on the meeting. ASBESTOS AND TALCUM POWDER The attached article from FDC REPORTS does an excellent job of reporting on the P.D.A.-sponsored meeting in Washington (August 3) to evaluate Dr. Selikoff's findings regarding this subject. Dr. Sid Speil represented J-M at this meeting. DR. IRUING J. SELIKOrr Attached are a number of items relating to other activities of Dr. Selikoff over the past month. 1. The fall issue of the INSULATION HYGIENE PROGRESS REPORTS, consisting entirely of the question and answer session of the first Union-IIHRP meeting on health and safety. 2. A report from the Community Medicine Newsletter on the union seminar held by Mount Sinai in April. 3. An article from the August 16 edition of JOB S/^FETY & HEALTH REPORTER concerning Dr. Selikoff's contention that the Department of Labor occupational TLV for asbestos is too high. 4. A copy of a letter from Dr. Selikoff to an engineer in Illinois reiterating his position that asbestoscement water pipe'poses no hazard to human health. OTHER ITEMS 1. A favorable article from OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY & HEALTH REPORTER on the National Academy of Sciences paper on the health effects of asbestos. ' - More - V 3APCO KIN 0001364 4- 2. A NEW YORK TIMES article quoting Secretary of Commerce, Maurice Stans urging caution and careful analysis of the economic impact of pollution control regulations and laws. 3. An article by Jack Barnhart of NIMA presenting medical and engineering evidence that reaffirms the absence of health hazards from fibrous glass insulations. * 4. An article from the September issue of the CONSUMER BULLETIN on the asbestos/health problem, especially as it relates to the general public. The AIA/NA is considering responding to some of the misstatements in this article. 5. An article about an investigation by the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers concerning alleged pollution of a California reservoir from airborne asbestos fiber from a mine operated by Pacific Asbestos (II.K. Porter Company). 6. Other Clips XI. A calendar of forthcoming medical meetings. W. P. Raines CAPCO KIN 0001365 SUMMARY AND EVALUATION Subject: Theory to account for the significant difference in mesothelioma incidence in two crocidolite mining areas in South Africa. Of interest and importance. Evaluation: This brief paper follows immediately the one by Harington et al. on the same subject. The present authors suggest that low incidence of mesothelioma in the Transvaal, as compared to the Northwest Cape province, is due to the greater thickness of the Transvaal crocidolite, which makes it less penetrable when inhaled. Samples show that the mean fiber diameter of Northwest Cape crocidolite is 0.073 microns while Transvaal crocidolite is 0.212 microns. "The dose of dust to the larger airways may thus be sufficient to produce asbestosis in both geographical areas... But there could be a marked difference between the fibers in the two areas if penetration to the pleura is an important factor in the production of mesotheliomas." Authors: Timbrell, V., Griffiths, D.M. and Pooley, F.D. (MRC Pneumoconiosis Unit, Penarth, Wales) Journal: Nature, July 2, 1971 Title: "Possible Biological Importance of Fibre Diameters of South African Amphiboles" Summary: As given above. - xxx - V CAPCO KIN 0001366 SUMMARY AND EVALUATION Subject: Confirmation of earlier findings regarding a lower incidence of mesothelioma from crocidolite exposure in two different areas of South Africa. Of interest and importance. Evaluation: In the well known study of Wagner, Sleggs and Marchand (1960), it was noted that there is a high incidence of mesothelioma in the Northwest Cape province of South Africa among crocidolite miners, but mesothelioma is not usually common among crocidolite miners in the Transvaal. That study was conducted in 1959. In the intervening years, production of crocidolite has continued in the Transvaal. Therefore in 1969 the present authors revisited the hospitals of the crocidolite areas of the Transvaal, to learn whether the incidence of mesothelioma had increased. They report that "although numerous cases of pneumoconiosis had been seen, only two pleural mesotheliomas had been diagnosed, and one of these had been exposed elsewhere." It therefore seems confirmed that Transvaal crocidolite at the mine site is less likely to be associated with mesothelioma than is Northwest Cape crocidolite. Authors: Harington, J.S., Gilson, J.C. and Wagner, J.C. (South African Institute for Medical Research) Journal: Nature. July 2, 1971 Title: "Asbestos and Mesothelioma in Man" Summary: As given above. V CAPCO KIN 0001367 SUMMARY AND EVALUATION Subject: Preliminary report by U.S. Public Health Service on measurements of asbestos in the ambient air. Of interest and importance. Evaluation: The findings, as given in the summary below, confirm that asbestos levels in the ambient air are very low; less than one nanagram per cubic meter, even in urban areas. However, the information is still very sketchy. The urban sites investigated are not identified. The term "point source" is not defined, although the first item of information given is that "asbestos levels are about 2 micrograms per cubic meter at a point source." Most of the discussion is concerned with methodology. Authors: Thompson, R.J. and Morgan, G.B. (Environmental Protection Agency, USPHS) Unpublished: Presented at the International Symposium on Identification and Measurement of Environmental Pollutants, Ottawa, Ont., June 14-17, 1971. Title: "Determination of Asbestos in Ambient Air" Summary: "Preliminary data obtained by the EPA procedure indicate that asbestos levels are about 2 micrograms/m^ at a point source, 0.5-15 ng/m^ at urban sites, and 0.1 ng/m^ at a nonurban site. Assuming 100 fibrils per fiber, and 10^ fibrils/ng, the expected value at a point source would be approximately 2 x 10 fibers/m . Current work will yield data on some 200 quarterly composites from 51 urban areas, and on some 60 individual samples from source sites, urban sites, and nonurban sites." - XXX - \` 3APCO KIN 0001368 SUMMARY AND EVALUATION Subject: Study of the effects of smoking on the incidence of pulmonary fibrosis among asbestos textile workers. Of interest and importance. Evaluation: Presumably the pulmonary fibrosis found among these asbestos workers is asbestosis, but the author carefully avoids calling it as such. His findings suggest that cigarette smoking contributes in some unknown way to the development of asbestosis, although "it is uncertain whether the effect of these two factors is additive (quantitative effect) or synergistic (qualitative effect)." He also notes that "the readings of pulmonary fibrosis on roentgenograms is subject to error." Author: Weiss, W. (Medical College of Pennsylvania) Journal: American Review of Respiratory Disease, August 1971 Title: "Cigarette Smoking, Asbestos and Pulmonary Fibrosis" Summary: "A group of 100 asbestos textile workers was examined by chest roent genogram and a questionnaire concerning age, sex, smoking habits, and duration of occupational exposure to asbestos. The roentgenograms were examined for evidence of pulmonary fibrosis without knowing the results of the questionnaire. Seventy-five workers were cigarette smokers and 25 were nonsmokers. The prevalence of pulmonary fibrosis was 40 percent in the smokers and 24 percent in the nonsmokers. The factors of age, sex, and duration of exposure to asbestos did not account for this difference. The prevalence of pulmonary fibrosis increased with increasing amount and duration of cigarette smoking and with increasing duration of exposure to asbestos." - XXX CAPCO KIN 0001369 SUMMARY AND EVALUATION Subject: Three cases of mesothelioma in three years in an Irish hospital. Asbestos association specifically denied. Of interest and importance. Evaluation: These three cases are decidedly worthy of note: Case 1 was in a 42-year-old priest; Case 2, in a 42-year-old farmer; Case 3, in a 23-year-old truck driver. The author is well aware that his report is unusual and his observations are quoted at length: "It is apparent that exposure to asbestos must fulfil certain criteria before mesothelioma can occur. The length of exposure must be long, at least 9 or 10 years and the size of fibre small enough to be respirable. Even when these conditions are fulfilled it does not necessarily follow that mesothelioma will develop in exposed workers, for as Webster pointed out mesothelioma is unknown in the Transvaal mines where conditions are exactly similar to those in the Northwest Cape. It is interesting to note here that carcinoma of the lung does not occur in asbestos workers unless they are also cigarette smokers, so that in both diseases asbestos apparently requires a 1 cocarcinogen' before it can produce either type of tumour. We have as yet no evidence to show what this substance is, nor have we any clue to the etiology of mesotheliomas in populations not exposed to the asbestos hazard, occupationally or paraprofessionally... "In none of the cases referred to in this paper was there the remotest possibility of exposure to asbestos and as one resided in a small town and the others in a completely rural atmosphere even the remote possibility of atmos pheric pollution must be excluded." Author: Hitchcock, H.T. (Surgical Thoracic Unit, Merlin Park, Galway, Eire) Journal: Irish Journal of Medical Science, October 1970 Title: "Mesothelioma of the Pleura" Summary: As given above. V CAPCO KIN 0001370 SUMMARY AND EVALUATION Subject: Study of the chest X-rays of fiber glass workers. Of interest and importance. Evaluation: Most studies to date of the bioeffects of inhaled fiber glass indicate that the material is relatively inert with no fibrogenic or toxic properties. The present study was undertaken to "substantiate or perhaps refute" that conclusion. The findings confirm the previous studies. Fiber glass factory workers with long term daily exposure to fiber glass showed no greater prevalence of chest abnormalities on X-rays than did a group of nonexposed office workers used as controls. Authors: Nasr, A.N.M., Ditchek, T. and Scholtens, P.A. (University of Michigan) Journal: Journal of Occupational Medicine, August 1971 Title: 'The Prevalence of Radiographic Abnormalities" Summary: "Chest radiographs of 2,028 workers employed in a fiber glass factory were examined. Approximately 16 per cent of the workers were found to have radiographic abnormalities. Increased lung markings, abnormal aorta, emphysema and abnormal heart were the most prevalent. Statistical correlation between the prevalence of all abnormalities and mean age, and between prevalence and mean duration of employment, in the various age groups, showed that the strength of the association is approximately equal. No difference in the prevalence of all abnormalities could be detected between office workers and production workers. All the radiologists made their diagnosis without knowledge of the worker's name, age, duration of employment and exposure category." - XXX - V CAPCO KIN 0001371 SUMMARY AND EVALUATION Subject: Analysis of the asbestos fiber content of drinking water and various beverages, mostly of Canadian origin. Of interest and importance. Evaluation: The authors begin by suggesting that the subject of "distribution of asbestos fibers in the environment" is important because of the well known occupational hazard to asbestos workers. They note that the "question as to the hazard of orally ingested asbestos has not been resolved" but they concede that amounts of asbestos found in their samples is "exceedingly small" -- about 1 microgram per 10 million fibers. The highest fiber count found was in unfiltered tap water taken from a lake in Thetford Mines, Quebec -- 172.7 million fibers per liter, "in the heart of an asbestos mining area." It is interesting to note that the second highest count of fibers (33.5 million) came from melted snow near Ottawa. The authors say this gives 'home indication of one source of asbestos in surface waters." Presumably they mean that the asbestos was origi nally airborne. Authors: Cunningham, H.M. and Pontrefact, R. (Department of Health and Welfare, Ottawa) Journal: Nature, July 30, 1971 Title: "Asbestos Fibres in Beverages and Drinking Water" Summary: Twelve brands of Canadian beer and wine, six brands of American beer, six brands of European wine and vermouth, two South African wines, as well as drinking water from various Canadian cities, river water, and melted snow from the Ottawa area were examined, and all found to contain tiny amounts of asbestos fiber. - XXX - V 3APCO KIN 0001372 SUMMARY AND EVALUATION Subject: Two cases of mesothelioma associated with relatively slight exposure to asbestos. Of some interest. Evaluation: Case 1- is another anecdotal history of family exposure. The father of the patient had been an asbestos insulation worker who brought his dusty overalls home. It is suggested that the patient developed mesothelioma, at the age of 31, as a result of this family exposure. No other member of the family was affected, although the father had asbestosis. In Case 2, the patient had worked as an asbestos miner and lived in the area of Canadian asbestos mines for years. The author comments: "There is probably no really safe level of asbestos exposure. The minor exposure experienced by relatives before signs of the disease process develop make pronouncements of safe or comparatively safe industrial exposure levels for asbestos workers unrealistic and misguided." Author: Champion, P. (University of British Columbia, Vancouver) Journal: American Review of Respiratory Disease, June 1971 Title: "Two Cases of Malignant Mesothelioma after Exposure to Asbestos" Summary; As given above. - XXX - V CAPCO KIN 0001373 SUMMARY AND EVALUATION Subject: Five cases of pleural mesothelioma, without known asbestos exposure. In Italian. Of some interest. Evaluation: The five case histories presented here lead into a thorough discussion of the subject with special attention paid to differential diagnosis. About half a page is devoted to etiology noting that the asbestos association as reported in the literature is strong, but apparently does not apply in all cases. There seems to have been no attempt to go back deeply into the history of these five cases to find asbestos exposure. There were four males: a "laborer," a bricklayer and two clerks; and one female domestic servant. Authors: Arisi, C., Colombo, L. and De Medici, A. (University of Pavia, Italy) Journal: Minerva Chirurgica, February 15, 1971 Title: "Primary Malignant Tumors of the Pleura" Summary: As given above. - xxx - V CAPCO KIN 0001374 SUMMARY AND EVALUATION Subject: Investigation of the activity of chrysotile asbestos in blood coagulation. In French with English summary. Of some interest. i Evaluation: A footnote to this paper indicates that the research is supported by the Institute for Occupational and Environmental Health. The English summary is given in full below. Authors: Cosette, M., Lemonde, J. and Massey, D.G. (University of Sherbrooke) Journal: L'Union Medicale du Canada, April 1971 Title: "Alkalinity and the Coagulation Produced by Chrysotile Asbestos" Summary: "Studies are presently underway on biological reactions caused by the chrysotile asbestos on hamsters. The physical and chemical characteristics of the asbestos are under study to investigate mechanisms that may explain the phenomena observed. Alkalinity is the topic of this report, and its influence in the coagulation of human plasma by asbestos i.s evaluated. The structure of chrysotile asbestos is reviewed, and the development of a standard method for the measurement of pH is described. pH results on aqueous suspensions of asbestos from several Canadian mines are reported. The pH of asbestos suspensions in water, in saline, and in human plasma are presented. The effects of atmos pheric contact, temperature, and other factors are established. The clinical implications are discussed in relation with asbestos (ferruginous) bodies." - xxx - V CAPCO KIN 0001375 SUMMARY AND EVALUATION Subject: Case report of an extremely rare type of mesothelioma of the heart. No asbestos association. Of some interest. Evaluation: This is the twelfth case in medical history of benign mesothelioma of the atrioventricular node, a small, slow-growing tumor. It has never been diagnosed clinically, but could be surgically removed before permanent damage is done to the heart. In this case, the tumor may have started in childhood. Authors: Lafargue, R.T., Hand, A.M. and Lev, M. (Northwestern University) Journal: Chest. May 1971 Title: "Mesothelioma (Coelothelioma) of the Atrioventricular Node" Summary: As given above. - XXX - V 3APCO KIN 0001376 *_ MEDICAL PAPERS OF MINOR INTEREST The'following medical papers have been screened and filed, but judged of insufficient interest-to warrant full summary and evaluation: Gaensler, E.A. and Kaplan, A.I., "Asbestos Pleural Effusion," presented before the American Thoracic Society, Los Angeles, Calif., May 17, 1971. An abstract of the paper presented. The material is identical with an earlier paper published by the authors. Gaffuri, E., "Current Knowledge on Occupational Tumors of the Respiratory System," Lotta Contro la Tuberculosi, July-September 1970. In Italian. General discussion of occupational lung cancers with one page devoted to the literature on asbestos. Brouet, G. et al, "Atmospheric Pollution by Fibrous Particles," Semaine des Hopitaux de Paris, June 2, 1971. In French. Report of a medical meeting in Paris, May 6-7, in which a panel reviewed the literature on asbestos and health. Venugopal, M., Leadbetter, R.J., Caldwell, B.L. and Boggs, J., "Malignant Mesothelioma," West Virginia Medical Journal, June 1971. A single case history leads to a review of the clinical literature. No mention of the asbestos association, and no occupational or environmental information on the patient. Sytman, A.L. and MacAlpin, R.N., "Primary Pericardial Mesothelioma: Report of Two Cases and Review of the Literature," American Heart Journal, June 1971. The authors specifically note: "There is no association of peri cardial mesothelioma with asbestosis (sic) in contradistinction to the high correlation of asbestosis with pleural and peritoneal mesothelioma." If they had any environmental information on their two patients, the data are not given. Davies, C.N., "Tissue Response to Asbestos," Annals of Occupational Hygiene (British), December 1970. News report of the meeting held in Cardiff, Wales, April 7-9, 1970. Sheinbaum, M., "Recommended Safe Practices for Spraying Asbestos," Industrial Hygiene Review, January 1971. A brief summary of accepted good practices for spraying insulation. However, "the use of materials that do not contain asbestos is the preferred method for protecting the health of workers who spray or prepare insulation material for spraying." Otto, H., "The Pathological Anatomy of Asbestosis and Sequelae of Asbestos Exposure," Fortschritte der Medizin, April 22, 197L In German. A review article. V OAPCO KIN ODD 1377 Minor Interest -- P. 2 Planteydt, H.T., "Short Report Concerning the Mesothelioma Registry," Nederlands Tiidschrift voor Geneeskunde, April 10, 1971. In Dutch. Report presented to a medical meeting. The Dutch mesothelioma registry has received more than 30 specimens from various cities in Holland. Soulie, P., Facquet, J., Caramanian, M. and Pauly-Laubry, C., "Mesothelioma of the Pericardium: A Case History," Coeur et Medecine Interne. April 1971. In French. The authors note that the rarity of this disease justifies a presentation. No asbestos association. Abisatov, K.A. and Shaikneev, Y.S., "Diagnosis and Treatment of Mesothelioma of the Pleura," Terapevtichesky Arkhiv (USSR), March 1971. In Russian with English summary. Description of two case histories. No apparent mention of asbestos. Polyakov, Y.F., "Two Cases of Malignant Mesothelioma of the Pleura," Terapevtichesky Arkhiv (USSR), March 1971. In Russian with English summary. Not the same cases as above, although same journal, same date. Again, no mention of asbestos. Klimanova, Z.F., "Alteration of the Cells of Mesothelioma in the Pleural Exudate," Arkhiv Patologiy (USSR), February 1971. In Russian with English summary. In a female patient, the cellular composition of the exudate at various stages of the disease is compared with the histological material obtained during surgery and autopsy. The data should have value in the ante-mortem diagnosis of mesothelioma. No mention of asbestos. - XXX - V CAPCO KIN 0001378 AMERICAN PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATION 50'5 Eigl'.ii'snlh Slroob NAY. Washington, ..C. 20036 Patrick FJ tinagan (202) 833~9C>4-0 Aji;f:i'ican Tijullc Hon.! Lb Association 1015. Eighteenth Street, xi.W. VAv/hinsiton, D.C, 20D35 Tcya r/-r-ir.riTATr. ;u;-iASn rn/t'S ftj.cnNcn f. Aibuifh/o:? coats jo aucijst'jj "fin; katioiv'k j:cat.ctJ" Th rood and 'Ji'-v.g Arriiiiatr^tior> hc-.s failed for nine weeks -to toko action . ori l::;r: ecsoc:--sumoi-H; pel 'T; rial cf 2L-0-. 0-;0 v ov-arUr: ecatu n - 'f:c:-ini =.-;T wi'b s-1:inr2I1-i2:C fcb: :: e, The A itf:::;' i>f F".;7I:, rr-pord?; that Fbh was notified of Thf: health hauerd av. April le, but -]>:: threat. nnH'J i onst pub.' icity forced the Adrdnirrarsrion to r.o: iissii: to evaluating the altus.t.J The /d'jd.r-i-ii t-al ior, announced or. June? S toots vEr-e lain;; conducted on SA'-'T'A OS of the Goats, Tid that a ennvnitl::;: V.M>:i?: r\ evaluate ike do:;;.; ;;;id announce the reeu;ts--.-ora intended acti ons ^ ;;iidilv. tin.'to uvols. Although ''The K'al'ion! > Health11 nnopiod FPA for one and r. half r.-r-nths after ite no3.ir,-.T!.''.-ou tlo-cU iO'..', the only corra-nt rrrao fay in thau i:b;e conn5.tics is still tv aim; ting the do i n, ;i A wrcnittec? report hud not bo or; fi3-e.a on Aug. u> nnd FDA continued to reinso to am'.ouuvt: ike nwco of suef/err of the: e.valuSd iuK Llco* Tiit.i At.;.T!: t; ifr:.!tion w;is first notified of the }iE;-.:-ro:lu.;?: coot:.; by Irving J. Seli-kcff, MU, an interjiationslly rocoH'ii/.od .authority* oh the deogorr; of asbestos fibers to human health. In letters to n.H. Surgeon Genera! Jesae L. r';toirifil<}*' biivio-oiusntJif'Ai Fro See {ton Agency chi of Wi3.il am U. Knobci sho;:;; and Virginia H. Knauer, special G.nnir.l ant: I n the President for conourer affairsJJi\ FeJ.ikbff call,cd for sicno Jo be taken to '''j.-rateer the p;jbli.o.7i It was often bin wavnin^s wore ignored by the authorities Hus! Df. ib.A ?.Koff asked 1he American JAiIjlic* HecJ.t'i A;;;;net ofion to prod the: I'iwd ved. An be;; ire:;, f hr-ve beer; 3 j;::sd s-'iid; ;.0>rk.o.Y.7:-0.1y 5i.i>;b rutet ci: lung o.n: r gostvo- in fin ail ornoer, r. i ii-.-n.'.--v:.v.eer of VS.'C lAnin-i ei _v;;: ;Au-;.. ui' --is; ;.;vje;--I r:.; <-vy.'hT:;.T<, in f V'.-cv.'.'V. hr. ScriUofl's f.?bCo cm '.be coai.:i c'.*.-Uic! l>>-iiyhir.g th-i.'.-i raicc.b tbi: Aft 1 f:j!; ioe j.i: VC.i. in Hie e-.-y- in > 0- Oeb .V.kr.CS ncxi.iCll. : CAPCO KIN 0001379 Hr, odikoff, the Intern;'.! Tonal Indies GstmcvT' Torkers ihr'cru end AIWi fU.Vi smoking a recall of all the coats, find r;d.iv.u atn rme; i t or pure!ia;;erf;. hh&n asked what an individual who already possesses one o:? the Duals should do with it. Jh\ .Selikoff cairrnsnvcd, 'Tinny if!" "Vi:Taf-ion's Healthwfth readership of 30, lifin health professionals and corouiivers, is the official-linvftpayftJJ of the Ivsverioan Public llunitli fesotf The lanjilhiy newspaper states nci* AFh'A pel.ley, features current issues in health, and gives news of Association uet iv.ities. ?J=# 3APCO KIN 0001380 f CAPCO KIN 0001381 looted by the medical advisor in PDA's Bureau of Product Saioty. ; was chaired by Dr. George VV. W right of St. Luke's Hospital in A word of warning to those individuals who are hoping to take advantage of the presca:on winter coat sales. If you run across a fitted kneelength coal of me!ton-tvpc cloth with red piping on the pockets, don't buy it. In fact, try not to get near it. Just by brushing against the material, which is 70 percent wool, 22 percent nylon, and--here's the rub--S percent asbestos, you raise the asbestos levels in the air 10.000 limes above what is considered normal. Thcic are about 100,000 of these coats in the nation's de partment stores, and every one of them is a potential hazard to your health, ac cording to Dr. Irving J. Selikoff, an expert on asbestos pollution. If you inhale mi croscopic bits of asbestos, they can irritate the lungs and may be the cause of even more serious damage. Furthermore, the asbestos In the material will not break down or disappear when in haled, explains Dr. SclikofT, the man w ho first exposed the hazard. So even though you may suffer no immediate ill effects from contact with the material, years later some other asbestos-induced mala dy--including lung cancer-- could develop. The coats cannot be re called because they have been so widely distributed, says Henoch Mcndelsund, a vicepresident of the International L.adics Garment Workers Union. However, the asbestos content is marked on a label fastened to every coat, and he advises shoppers to check tags before buying. Noting that studies of workers handling asbestos in dicated that they suffer a high rate of cancer and tu mors, Mr. Mendelsund has ordered members of his union not to cut the cloth. He has also alerted a number of in dustry associations of the danger posed by the use of asbestos in clothing. The union leader declines to identify the manufacturers by name because he feels that they were unaware of the health hazatd involved and will not make additional gar ments. What should you do if you already own such a coat? Dr. SclikofT, who is director of the Environmental Science Laboratory of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, has two simple words of advice: "Bury it." A New Lease on Life For Mr. Lapp Most housewives collect cou pons to buy silverware. But Mrs. Joseph Micklas ofCornwall-on-Hudson, N.Y., is hop ing to redeem hers for an artificial kidney machine. Mrs. Micklas's brother, Ervin Lapp of Birmingham, Mich., ha; been getting twiceweekly trea ments on a bor- rowed machine. Last year, however, Mr. Lapp learned that such equipment could be purchased with Betty Crocker coupons. His sister soon managed to accumulate 60,000 of the 600,000 needed. But then General Mills decided to can cel the program as of this December. Mrs. Micklas asked her church for help. Word of her plight reached the news media, and coupons began pouring in. So far, she's accumulated 500,000, and wiih four months to go, it looks as if Mr. Lapp will get hi; machine. A doctor chooses to become a surgeon rather than a psy chiatrist for much the same reason he prefers Bach to the Beatles. It's a matter of per sonality. That is the conclu sion of a recent study of freshman medical students. Conducted by psychologist Rosalia E. A. Pavia and Harold B. Haley, M.D., the study pieced together profiles of doctors most likely to enter one of four specialties--gen eral practice, surgery, internal medicine, or psychiatry. Students deeply committed to religious values, and with a strong faith in a patient's ability to help heal himself, are likelier to select general practice. Such students also put a greater emphasis on the personal aspects ofdoctoring. In contrast, students ex hibiting little concern with religion but strongly inter ested in social and aesthetic values lean to psychiatry. A strong intcicst in eco nomic considerations char acterizes both future intern ists and surgeons. 8 Family Hoallh/August CAPCO KIN 0001382 THE NEW YORK TIMUS, SUNDAY, JULY IS, W1 / Asbestos: enclose the spraying ereas with large plastic tarpaulins; he was also to vacuum each story twice and to be particularly careful conducted by ' Dr. Selikoff's ' group. In a series of consecutive autopsies, the tiny asbestos fibers (a million to the inch when laid You'll Be All Right If You ; when shoveling up the excess material. During a recent visit to a con struction site in company with Harold Homer, assistant commis sioner in the Department of Air Resources, this writer saw piles of loose asbestos lying around side by side) were found in the lungs of 24 out of 28 New York ers. Apparently once tlie fibers enter the lungs, they stay there. As evidence of the dangers at tending asbestos has mounted, new indications of Us omnipres ence have emerged, Just Stop on' the sprayed floor, gaping holes in the tarpaulins and gusts Breathing of wind carrying clumps of the dry material into the street, where it lay like an early norn ing frost. New Yorkers strolling along Mr. Romer's inspectors have almost any midtown street in handed out more than 259 sum these 90-degree July days will monses in tlie past year for often be greeted by a "snowfall:", such violations, and still the white flakes glinting in the sun, "snowflakes" fall. Tile reason: tumbling out of the sky. If you The courts fine offending con seopp up some of the "snow tractors between $25 and $50 a flakes," and happen: to have an violation, which bothers a multi- electron microscope handy to million-dollar contractor about examine them, you will find the . as much as a mosquito bite white fluffs to be composed of bothers an elephant. millions of fibers of asbestos. Their source? Up among-the ris ing bare girders of the building So now the City Council has banned asbestos spraying al together. Contractors will have to The air of Manhattan, tested far from a construction site, con tains six times as much asbestos as the air of Ridgewood, N.J. The fibers may come from the brake linings of automobiles as vvell as from windbom construe- tion spray. Two weeks ago, Jerome Kretchmer, the city's' Environ mental Protection Administrator, called a press conference to say he had asked the Federal Depart ment of Health, Education and Welfare to investigate asbestos that his department had found in baby talcum powder. Talcum, like asbestos, is a mineral and the two are often found together. under construction overhead, apply the material as a paste-- asbestos is .being sprayed. a much more expensive process Asbestos is intended to save --or shift to masonry as a heat lives by insulating girders retardant. Spraying may continue against the heat or' a fire, pre at buildings under construction venting the steel from bending only to next February. like molasses before the occu One of the provisions of the pants can escape from the upper law requires workers to wear floors. But the substance has masks while spraying is con a deadly side, as well. Studies ducted. Many, it was found, fail conducted over tbe past few to do so. Yet according to stud decades, reinforced by later re- - ies made by Dr. Irving J. Seli- search among men who work koff and his colleagues -at the veaied than an Italian maker of cloth had mixed asbestos with other fibers to take advantage' .of reduced import duty on fireresistant materials. The cloth; was tailored into coats, and Dr. Selikoffs laboratory discovered1 that wearers of such coats move in a cloud of asbestos dust. Numerous modem buildings that'have already been sprayed with asbestos have large Interior with the material, have provided Division of Environmental Medi .channels and chambers lined strong evidence Unking asbestos cine at Mount Sinai Hospital, with the stuff. Those channels with cancer of the lung and ab the chance that an asbestos frequently provide the return domen. With esbestos, numer worker will get lung cancer is . from air-conditioning so that ous researchers have induced seven or eight times as great as the surfaces offer up fibers to various kinds of cancer in ham for the population as a whole.- the air-conditioned air. ' sters and in rats. And in recent months, the ubiquity of asbestos in the environment--in the air we breathe, in clothes, even in. talcum powder--has caused in creasing concern among many medical leaders. Last week, the' City Council moved to end one major, source of asbestos pollution by banning If he also smokes cigarettes, he is 92 times more likely to con tract cancer than the average man. The exact link between as bestos and cancer is not known. It is believed that since asbestos has tlie excellent property of ab sorbing other chemicals onto its surface (it is often used a filter), Finally, there 13 the asbestos time bomb. All the sprayed build ings will be demolished in, say, 75 to 100 years. As the wreck ing balls smash the masonry and the girders are dismembered, the air for miles around will be filled with a haze of asbestos dust. Annual world asbestos produc its spraying throughout the city. if may, once taken into the lung, tion has increased from 500,GOO The ban appeared as a section hold cancer-causing chemicals in tons in 1930 to more than 4 mil of the new air pollution control contact with cells for just that lion tons" today, a nine-fold rise. code; it was enacted essentially extra amount of time needed to It has pervaded almost every because earlier efforts by city , set the cells on their rampage major ' manufactured product. air control officials to regulate of wild, uncontrolled growth. The City Council's ban on spray the use of asbestos by building Normally, the self-cleaning ing is the first move to stop the contractors had proved fruitless. process of the lungs ' quickly July snowfall and to^get asbestos New York City last year set regulations to limit the escape of ejects such material. cancer - causing under control. ~ ~ --EARL U3ELL asbestos from spraying sites. The That most of us have our share Mr Ubcll is Science Editor far- mle3 required that a contractor of asbestos was indicated in tests WCBS-TV News, New York, r.APr.o kin nnnisas I a b er h en rin ,fi J^rr.z: -/ c,,... ,:.J<,S' J.,., ;v J D) /->( r . j&esioracHCMtts TI '"ej> out.nase of si@ibes'og By Don Dingwall VANCOUVER, B.C.-- Labor Minisier ' James Chabof has referred a Irade union' brief regar ding dangers to health from the use of asbestos to fne Workmen's Com pensation Beard. And Tony Cirnldi. business agent of Vancouver Local 118 of the Heat & Frost Insulators and Asbestos Workers, said last week that the brief will bo presented to the WCB at public hearings in October. Cirnldi told She Journal: "We <{**.t'i .. Ir, l\/% Cne*f\A H'ilU situation that, every time liter's an asbestos spraying job. we have to go through the same drill as happened at the Pacific Centre in April regarding Ike enforcement . of safety regulations." Displaying an active interest in the aims of the brief are Van couver longshoremen who load asbestos transported south from Cassiar. The Pacific Centre dispute spotlighted the problem locally and. since then, the asbestos coming to Vancouver , port for handling is packed in plastic bags rather than the previously used jute. At the Pacific Centro men working on the job complained about the dust and there was talk among them about asbestos being a health hazard. Ciraldi said: "We did not promote this concern." He said that, at the instigation of one concerned individual on the job. posters were put up around the site warning of the dangers from asbestos. Asbestos is being used in the Toronlo-Dominion tower as lirepreofing. Ciraldi said the men. realizing they were breathing in the asbestos dust regularly and not knowing the extent of the danger, called for a safety committee meeting. Suggestions were made at this meeting' for a change of material being used; spraying at night only: and segregation of the asbestos spraying area. After a visit by WC'l officials at the invitation, of the unions the asbestos spray area was sealed off by a plastic tarpaulin and Lite area posted with -Xo unauthorized persons' and `Masks must be worn' signs. Other regulations enforced were a clcan-up of materials immediately work in a particular sector was complete, and com pletion of work, on one floor before moving to the next. It was only when Bird Con- ^tiuolio-ii 1 mjaOgOi si only accepted four of eight union safety ['reposals that the men walked o:f the job. They went hack when the contractors agreed to (lie further safety measures of sealer to be applied to ali asbestos covered surfaces; all fleers to he dust free. In he swept when wet and ! v, i.i'm: dry . . 'J MORE STRINGENT Ciraldi said the brief calls for more stringent control of the application of asbestos. "The ill effects of asbestos spraying affect all the tradesmen on a job," he said. "Ever;, one thinks the WCB is the answer to all construction industry ailments but they're not set up that way. There arc no really stringent controls at present, although the board rides lay down some regulations regarding spraying." Asbestos spraying is done by carpenters and plasterers as well as members of the Heat & Frost Insulators and Asbestos Workers, and Ciraldi said one of the problems within the unions themselves is to educate the men to the dangers and the necessity for taking precautions. The brief was presented - jointly hv the Insulators; the B.C. & Yukon Territory Building and Construction Trades Council, and New Westminster & District Building and Construction Trades Council representing between | them 05.000 workers. ! Copies of the brief were scot to Vancouver city council; Dr. Gerald Bonham, director of health for the Vancouver Metropolitan district: provincial health minister Ralph Doffmnrk; the. Department of Labor in Ottawa; and to Ml.A's Barrie Clark, Liu.. of X wth Vancouver and Dr. Scot! ..Wailaco. SC.. Oak Bay. Ottawa has told Ciraldi that the matter is almost "ex:' elusive!1.' a provincial jurisdiction but the.k-rief has been referred to' the national in.-..u:i ai.e. vsc..arc department "for appropriate studv. comment and follow-up. Local 297 of the International ' Pulp & Sulphite Workers. Gibsons. h.as indicated its support for the ' - brief. COMPENSATION Cirnldi said that, while the WCB has paid benefits in cases of asbeslosis in the shipbuilding industry, there were cases of men in the construction field turned down for "various reasons" when they tried to get compensation /when affected by asbesiosis. The WCB say they know of only five eases of asbesiosis in the province. A WCB spokesman informed the Journal: "Aii regulations are : under review at the moment. A : committee comprised of two men ; each from management, labor | and the board started meeting in | March, last year and it has pretty t well completed its revisions. "These are now before the *. board's legal department' for study and it is hoped to hold public hearings in October. Before that date however, copies of the proposal revisions will be sent out to tr..\aagemonl and labor." . A spokesman for the Con struction Labor Relations Association of B.C. declined t ..- 3APCO KIN 0001384 X. comment on tin" subject except to soy: "ft is a.matter for govern'incut o:id V.'Cl investigation." Points from the brief include Urn comment that "it is significant that the Vancouver School Hoard has discontinued the use of asbestos powder in the school system on the recommendation of health officer Hr. C.lf. Bonham, for reasons of `adverse health effects from exposure to asbestos.' This order was given on March 12 this year.". ^dancers ^ Also from Iho brief: "A study of asbestos workers in B.C. was made by J.F. Iluriburt, N.G. .Schulscn, UBC medical students advised and assisted by Dr. Stephen Grzybowski, and publish,ed in the B.C. Medical Journal of .March, 1S71. The results of the study were that abnormally high incidence of asthma, 20 per cent, had reduced vital lung capacity. Of significance was the negative results of this study duo to the large extent (o which fibergias has replaced asbestos as an insulation material in recent years. "The dangers of prolonged asbestos exposure are '.veil documented and still exist. Tints it is recommended that every person appreciably exposed to asbestos have an annual examination including lung function studies, sputum examination and adequate Xrays. "Cases of asbeslosis havebeen reported among members of the local union in the past, and it is recommended that preventive measures should be taken in the future." On March C, 1971, Dr. Scott Wallace told the B.C. Legislature that the Workmen's Com pensation Act should be changed to allow the bor-d to pay disability pension for asbeslosis. He documented (lie cases of throe men who had asbeslosis and were denied disabilitv pensions by the WCB. The brief claims it is im perative that workers subjected to asbestos dust have recourse to a - -- disability pension if they become afflicted by nsbestosis as a result of such dust. It also suggests Vancouver city council, as well as the legislature, take the necessary steps to pass the requisite laws to ensure the safety of the general public as well as the tradesmen on the job, in regard to control of the spray application of asbestos insulation. - AStiKSTOS RAX Finally. the brief slates: "It is imperative that legislation be passed for protection of the general public banning Ibc use of asbestos as welt as other questionable materials in tfTc air, streams oral! 1n;1Tcli:igs in~Brifisii j Columbia." I Looking at Hie problem in a wider sense, the use ot asbestos insulation materials is now barecd in several U.S. cities in cluding Chicago. Boston anti Philadelphia ami the use of such products is severely restricted in - other chics. ' The United. Kingdom has ___ issued guidelines for the use of asbestos insulation products so severe the contractors just can't meet them. Are similar problems in store for Canada's insulation con tractors? Asbestos, the finest natural mineral fibre, is chemically almost inert with the result that living organisms have no way of eliminating (he substance from the tissues. Any asbestos material that enters the body via the respiratory system is there to stay and (he effects of numerous ex posures are cumulative. Heavy exposures are known to cause asbeslosis, a pulmonary disease that can kill within ill years. Also, especially in com bination with cigarette smoking, various cancers seem to be iinduecd. IMPROVEMENTS At the moment the emphasis is on improving working con ditions in the trade - reducing.lhc level of airborne asbestos dust to an acceptable level. The problem, of course, is to define what is "acceptable." A program being conducted bv the U.S. hisulnlion Industry liygienv Research team under Dr. Irving Selikoff has ' devised methods and procedures to reduce the amount of airborne asbestos dust...but the one hang-up remains. What is an "acceptable level" of airborne dust? What seems clear is that, if asbestos is to continue in use as an insulation material, the industry must voluntarily adopt certain rules and regulations. It must police itself before government institutes procedures just loo stiff to allow for compliance. Use of substitutes in Canada is negligible, largely because only a small number of architects specify their use and because they arc up to 10 per cent more ex pensive. Whether or not the storm south of the border is likely to move north seems to depend in large measure on self-imposed industry practices, and how well union members stick by them. CAPCO KIN 0001385 -.0 - F-D-C BlIPO'US August 0, 1971 f FDATEMiMAiT"CLEARS" MAJOiTMFfeS.,~CC;sKirnc"TALC Of- ASBESTOS COMTAivlIM^foib LAGr-riCY DEVELOP Mt-THODQLOGY; CONSUMEftlST COMPLAINS SESSION TOO TECHMlCAL . 'The Laic "crisis," created by publicity given to preliminary results of a Mount Gin:d Medical School study, dissolved Aug." 3 as participants in an FDA-sponsored seminar agreed that cosmetic talcs made by major ml'rs. are free of asbestos and pose no health hasard. If any hazard decs exist, the 40-plus conferees concluded, it stems from products made by smaller rnfrs. who do not exercise the care and quality control used by larger firms. The percentage of the market held by companies whose products may contain asbestos is believed to be minuscule. The "crisis" provides another example of hov/ FDA and dnrj-cosmetic mfrs. can he forced to mact to lay press publicity giyon to pmliminniy and often inconclusive studies. Mo pialtcr hov/ v/.-dcly the reports of FDA's "clearance" <>f most cosmetic talcs arc disseminated,. Me irnpmsujoii will icmain with some newspaper readers that certain.talcs contain asbestos. The seminar was marked by the participation of a consumer representative, Morris Kaplan, technical director of Consumers Union, which publishes Consumer Reports. Kaplan was ir.vitcu to avoid criticism that the session represented a private conference between govt, and industry. Kaplan's appearance at a closed .FDA seminar shows how concerned govt, officials have bee wno about the consumer movement and charges that consumers are net represented v;non i.-nponanf. decisions ere mrae. m ihe future, similar minings v/ill be attended by rep rover,!/-.lives of responsible consumer groups. Kaplan was one of sever, scheduled speakers r.t the conference. Mo talked fora matter of seconds on "Consumer Interest" in talc. )\;D.j p ism;,-ee Over i ion'lb Hr yard Pcvcri By Asbestos lulir.lr'ion.: J-v.J Analyses Methodology Kaplan ployed a minor role in the day's proceedings, and at one point complained that the conference was too "technical," and that the larger issue -- use by consumers of talc that may be dangerous to health was overlooked. At the close of the meeting Kaplar; asked lo be kept iruormed of developments. . Despite its conclusions that no health bazacd exists, FDA will push ahead v. itli de velopment of a methodology to test talc for asbestos. BuFnods Colors do Cosmetics Div. Director Alfred Weissler, who chaired the Aug. 3 session, will write a methodology and cir culate it among participants. FDA then will decide whether it should spend the money to sponsor tests of leading brands. The battery of specialized arid sophisticated tests will include X-ray diffraction, polarizing optical microscopy, electron microscopy, and electron diffraction of selected particles. The Mount Sinai medical team that found asbestes-resembling material in two unnamed talcs did not use tne electron diffraction test, which is considered vital. % The all-day session was called by FDA after NYC environmental chief Jerome Krotchrnor generated publicity over the preliminary results of the Mount Sinai study. He wrote HEW Socty. Richardson suggesting a full-scale study. .The Aug. 3 session was designed lo determine a methodology for testing talc for asbestos. .- The FDA seminar was attended-by MDs who disagreed over tiro health hazard in"..Ivod in asbestos inhalation; talc mfrs. and suppliers JkrJ, Pfizer and Whittaker, Clmv. A. 1 w.lie's; ..sbeslos experts, and a geologist. J&J presented an extensive and detailed r-uilysis CAPCO KIN 0001386 Community Medicine Newsletter Vo 1. 2, No. 1 \ SCIENCE AND LABOR: TIIE EMERGING ALLIANCE The Division of Environmental Medicine scored an outstanding success April 19--2.3 when it gave the world's first health hazards course uSsimod SHOT 'i fi nr. 1 Ty for iminn ir-.:r.Tr!-\r>'.-': ^ = i; I-Kn W <' YnrV Academy of Sciences, 2. East. 63rd Street, Manhattan, Last year this division gave the world's first course in asbestosis, The Occupational Health Hazards course, under the direction of / Dr. Irving Selikoff and Dr. Harry Heimann, covered the full range of occupational hazards incltiding accidents, toxic gases and chemicals, and long-term effects associated with inhalation, of certain dusts. Seventy-five union members from 25 unions attended. An advisory committee of labor leaders for the course included Andy llass, Secretary, and Jacob Novak, Vice President, of the Inter national Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Asbestos Workers;. Anthony Kazzocchi, Legislative Director, Oil Chemical, and Atomic Workers Prank Wallick, Automobile Workers; Marco Vestick, United Steelworkers. 23 CAPCO KIN 0001387 Commenting on the course, Jack Novak said, "One oi: the most im portant aspects of it was that, not only were health hazards clearly described, but.we were told what to do about them. And this included not only on the shop floor and at the construction site,, but in the state legislature - and even in Congress." An article entitled "Occupational-Health. Science and Labor, The Emerging Alliance," in Occupational Hazards spoke of the course as "a milestone in the newly forged alliance of union leaders and some prominent scientists concerned about environmental health." It said: "Dr. Selikoff told Occupational Hazards that the purpose of the course is to develop a degree of expertise in industrial health and safety among union leaders. Dr. Selikoff has long maintained that institutions like Mount Sinai have a responsibility to labor unions and other organizations which have a legitimate need for research data covering specific health problems. " 'Organized labor has brought us requests for research into such hazardous agents as cotton dust, enzyme detergents, asbestos, and pitch and tar. We have agreed to help,' said Selikoff. "Now that organized labor is taking new interest in occupational health, partly as a result of fear that the second industrial revolution has spawned new health hazards only partially understood, labor leaders are seeking and finding scientific counsel available for the asking. The latest manifestation of this is the spring meeting at Mount Sinai, ' "The faculty roster for the five-day course reads like a 'Who's Who' in occupational disease research. Dr. Heimann told us: 24 \* :APCO KIN 0001388 - " 'We will be able to help unions begin to develop an industrial hygiene and safety capability of their own. We try to make them aware that there is an occupational health problem in American industry which has not been effectively dealt with. We also want to teach them that something can be done about occupational health hazards, something other than making a request for hazards pay. 11 'Many occupational diseases occur because workers and management are unaware of the problem. By bringing together uijion representatives .d: and scientists we make union leadership aware of the fact that there are people who' can help them.' "Dr. Heiinann hopes that this year's course will be just the first of many. *'Most of the men we have this year are from the middle level of union leadership,' he said, 'union safety directors, legislative directors, and the like. The people T'd psiu^ci-Mly like eventually ta .i attend these sessions are the shop stewards. I hope in future years to put them through the course.' "Frank Walliek, editor of the United Automobile Workers' 'Washington Report,1 and a member of the advisory committee for the April conference, told us, 'It's been sometimes difficult to get the average worker aroused about industrial health hazards.- Exhortation hasn't worked. I believe education will.' "George Taylor, executive director of the AFL-CIO's Standing Committee on Safety and Occupational Health, told us, 'This type of instruction will be of immediate benefit, and it will be a kind of seed corn, the\ beginning of a continuing, expanding effort. Eventually, such instruction should reach the shop steward level, but first we should develop in trade unions a cadre of concerned, informed leaders'. * " On behalf of American labor, Dr. Selikoff- presented to Dr. Harriet . \* Hardy of M.I.T. the Alice Hamilton Award for service to the working man. 25 CAPCO KIN 0001389  Legislation Leonard A. Eiserer Publisher Gerda Shugaar Editor Economics Medicine Technology Bi-weekly business newsletter published from the Nation's Capital Business Publishers, Inc., P.O. Box 1067, Blair Station, Silver Spring, Maryland 20910, (301) 587-6300. Subscription Rate: $60 per year, $.35 for six months U.S., Canada and Mexico; $70 per year in'all other countries (includes air mail postage). Multiple copy rates on request to Henry E. Kleiner, Jr., Business Manager. Vol. 1 No. 11 ________________ ___________ August 16, 1971 SLANTS & TRENDS Page 91. MORE STANDARDS THAN EXPECTED will be effective August 27 as Department of Labor rescinds delay on sections of initial standards package (see story below).- GOVERNMENT IS THE LAST RESORT for improving job safety and health in the eyes of Oil, Chemical, and Atomic Workers who stress reliance on safety committees, strong con tract clauses, and labor-management procedures (see p.98). LIGHT RESIDENTIAL .CONSTRUCTION STANDARDS are delayed in anticipation of new rulemaking proc.e.edings in response tc charges, particularly by contractors, that proposed standards were unrealistic (see p.93). THREE TIMES MORE SERIOUS THAN STREET CRIME is the way Ralph Nader characterizes haz ards to health and safety in the workplace as he urges stepped-up action (see p. 95). /--X DEATH TOLL OF THOUSANDS IS PREDICTED as outcome of serious error of judgment in sit ting asbestos exposure standard, if the standard is not changed (see p.97). t. t*, n II o DELAYS RESCINDED FOR SCME INITIAL STANDARDS Some standards which were scheduled to become effective Feb. 15, 1572, will go into operation with the rest of the initial standards package on Aug. 27, 1972, according to amendments published in the Federal Register Friday, Aug. 13. The change was made because reconsideration showed that the scope of "additional delay in effec tive date provisions" (JS&HR, June 7, 1971, p.46) is too broad and includes standards for which no delay is necessary for compliance, according to Secretary of Labor J.D. Hodgson. Unnecessary delays have been a sore point with the labor unions whicn have pressed hard for revision, Sheldon W. Samuels, of the AFL-CIO Industrial Union Department told JS&HR. Sections Affected Portions of the initial standards package affected by these amendments, advanc ing the effective date from Feb. 15, 1972 to August, are:. (1) G -- occupational health and environmental control (section on air contaminants has been revised iu its entirety, in the interest of greater intelligibility and accuracy) (2) H -- hazardous materials. (3) I ;-- '-ersonal protective equipment, (4) J -- general environmental controls, (5).L -- fire protection. ' Subpart N -- materials handling and storage -- has been revised in order to give time `for the modification of existing overhead and gantry cranes and to reflect accur ately the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standard from which the pro vision is derived. Similar changes have been made in the provisions on crawler, locomotive, and truck cranes and on derricks, for .the same reasons. Subpart 0 machinery and machine guarding -- has been revised to give 36 months for the modifi cation of presently installed mechanical power presses.` The delay is provided in the ANSI standard adopted in the section. . ': All rights reserved. Reproduction in any form whatsoever forbidden without express permission from.the publisher. CAPCO KIN 0001390 August 16, 1971 joi SAFETY & HEALTH Page 93 NIXON SIGNS $64-MILLION APPROPRIATION BILL The Labor Department received $37,541,300 .for job safety and health activities in fiscal year 1972, an increase of $5-million over what the Administration had requested, in the appropriation measure signed by President Nixon Aug. 11. The allocation for HEU's job safety and health activities is $26,466,000 compared with the budget request of $25,216,000. The Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission, quasi-judicial review board, will have $400,000, the amount requested; Differences in amounts voted for Departments of Labor and HEW by the House and Senate (JS&HR, Aug. 2, 1971, p.82) were reconciled in Conference Committee. *** LIGHT RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION STANDARDS DELAYED SIX WEEKS Application of construction standards published April 17 (JS&HR, April 26, 1971, p.19) to light residential construction was to have been effective August 15, but was post poned six weeks to September 27 by amendments published in the Federal Register Aug. 14. The delay anticipates commencement of rule-making proceedings within that period that will be concerned with standards now being drafted that would effect light residential construction and other construction. The Department of Labor's Construction Safety Advisory'Committee has studied more than 80 comments received from parties interested in light residential construction, including the National Association of Homebuilders, and submitted recommendations to Assistant Secretary George C. Guenther. "In carrying out our responsibilities under the Act to provide safe and healthful working conditions for employes, we have been and intend to be receptive to the views of employers who will continue to be covered by our standards" said Guenther, announcing that OSHA intended to give careful consideration to the Advisory Committee's report and take the necessary action to implement its recommendations. Subcommittees of the advisory group have been established to initiate development cf standards on roll-over protective structures on earth-moving equipment used on construc tion, including tractors, and on construction of power transmission and distribution lines. Proposals Are 'Ridiculous' "There is actually more danger in putting up the protective railings than there is in putting up the roof," Alvin S. Brown, president of the 1,500-member New Jersey Builders Association is quoted in the Newark, N.J., Star-Ledger in criticism of "restrictive and unnecessary standards that, if implemented as written, will affect housing costs to the point that many more people will be unable to afford a decent home in which to live." Construction of safety railings around any roof over 10 feet off the ground, at an additional cost to the buyer of $150 per house "is ridiculous," said Brown, adding that accidents involving roofers of homes that height rarely occur. Many more rules such as these will raise the price of today's average home at least $2,000, Brown claimed. These regulations were probably designed with the heavy construction industry in mind, but as printed do not differentiate between the two, Brown said. Insurance underwriting costs of workmen's.compensation for residential carpentry is substantially lower, since losses are about one-half those of industrial and commercial carpentry combined, he said, and enforcement of "these unrealistic safety standards" upon residential construction is "totally unwarranted and unnecessary." *** LOCKHEED CASE GOES TO REVIEW COMMISSION Lockheed Shipbuilding and Construction Go. becomes case Number 13 on the docket of the Review Commission in contesting a proposed $10,000 penalty for alleged unsafe working conditions at the site of a tunnel explosion in California which took 17 lives. Three more cases have been filed with this Commission this month: (No.'14) California Stevedore and Ballast Co., San Francisco, 2 citations, $1,200, and 1 citation for a nonserious violation, $60, (No. 15) Puget Sound Power and -Light Co., Bellevue, Wash., $600 proposed penalty, (No. 16) Fischbach and Moorb`, Inc., flew York (electrical contrac tor), $600 proposed penalty. CAPCO KIN 0001391 SAFETY & HEALTH-- August 16, 1971job report________________________________________________ Page 95 NATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE SHARES VIEWS ON INSPECTIONS < Eleven members of the newly appointed National Advisory Committee on job safety and health (JS&HR, Aug. 2, 1971, p.83) met with top staff members and officials of OSHA, the Review Commission, and NIOSH Aug. 11. After a swearing in and agency reports, members commented on proposed rules for inspections, published May 5 (JS&HR, May 10, 1971, p.27) and being revised in view of public comments of which more than 100 were received. Management representatives were particularly critical of the proposal that citation notices should remain posted for 15 days', even if the violation is corrected earlier. Labor questioned a number of proposals, including one that would give to employers the responsibility of notifying the employes' representative of an impending inspection.Proposed regulations have been changed to safeguard trade secrets, a matter of concern to many employers, an OSHA spokesman reported. *** JOB HAZARDS THREE TIMES MORE SERIOUS THAN STREET CRIME -- NADER Despite Congressional hearings, the problem of occupational safety and health hazards has not received one percent of the attention it deserves, Ralph Nader told dele gates to the 11th convention of Oil Chemical and Atomic Workers at Miami, Fla. The most intense pollution zone in the country is not over New York City of Los Angeles; it's right inside the plants where the workers are exposed to it. Many workers have been exposed to these problems so long they have, in some ways, adjusted to them -- which is really the danger signal, Nader said. People's minds may adjust, but their bodies are exposed to toxic ingredients that develop lung cancer and bladder diseases and ailments that hit later on and "make prospects of retirement a dismal one, indeed." Nader faulted the government for failing to gather data and protect workers; unions which "haven't paid anywhere near the attention they should to this problem," and plant doctors in cahoots with management*. Not a single issue of the United Mine Workers Journal, for example mentioned black lung dicaacn tmril 10^7-AR^ although pno'^oconiosis t W was recognized in British medical literature in the 1930s and made compensable in England in the late 1930s, he said. The Department of Labor "for over 25 years has been suppressing the inspection reports by government inspectors of plants who do business with the government," under the Walsh-Healey Act. Nader's raiders won a suit to make these reports public under the Freedom of Information Act and the Department "is trying to find new ways to avoid dis closure," Nader said. Half the reports show violations and that's the reason for the 25-year fight to keep these reports from being published, he added, calling it "outrageous Nader's Suggestions Occupational crime should be made a front rank political issue. Not one out of five average citizens would now list job health and safety violence among the five worst forms of violence in the United States. At least a number of presidential, senatorial, and congressional candidates should begin taking stands and being rewarded or penalized at the polls for their stands. Nader challenged the unions on the kind of manpower they have in Washington and elsewhere, saying even one or two engineers, scientists or doctors "makes-a Whale of a difference" in terms of information collected and energy used. "We have taken on a medical doctor," Nader said, who will work full time this year on enforce ment of the job safety and health Act. "I will show you at the end of the year what that one doctor will have achieved." - Young professionals and students provide an enormous pool of talent "just raring to go" and one that can be drawn on with very reasonable economy of wage, Nader said. It is also important to link the occupational health and environmental pollution area together, because it is one phenomenon and if not linked, the "divide and rule technique" is going to work. Priceless information is being lost, he warned, calling for a "system whereby workers v.'ho discovered hazards or abuses or defects or frauds can funnel this information into the Union" which can apply to the institutions that have responsibility, such as the l-ederal Power Commission or the Department of Labor'. Information can increase in its impact a thousandfold simply by setting up a systcin to_collect it in a systematic way and to verify it, Nader said. ~ 3APCO KIN 0001392 - ; August 16, 1971 _iob SAFETY & HEALTH report 7Page 97 NEWS BRIEFS New chief of the division of media services at'0S11A is Samuel M. Sharkey, Jr., who comes to the Labor Departmerit from Newhouse National News Service where he served as news editor. Previously he was with NBC in New York 8 years, head of the national news desk at the New York Times for 10 years, and foreign editor at the Philadelphia Inquirer 4 years. Sharkey will work with newspapers, radio, TV, and magazines on OSHA news. First woman safety inspector appointed by OSHA is Josephine P. O'Brien, who will work out of Chicago as a safety assistant, inspecting plants throughout Illinois. Labor's expanding role in education on matters of job safety and health will be given a decided boost when Labor Studies Center, Inc., now located at 1500 Massachusetts Ave., N.W. , Washington, D.C. moves to its own campus, recently purchased, at Xaverian College, 10000 New Hampshire Ave., Silver Spring, Md. College has dormitory, classroom, and conference space to accomodate groups of up to 100. New task force on training employes and their representatives will -further strengthen union education in job safety and health. Task force will include George Taylor, execu tive secretary of the AFL-CIO standing committee on job safety and health; Fred Hoehler, director of the Labor Studios Center, Inc.; Sheldon W. Samuels, of the AFL-CIO Industrial Union Department job safety and health program; as well as William Kelly, director of the division of training for NIOSH, and Dr. Earl D. Heath, director of OSHA's office of education. Labor Department's compliance officers 2i*e learning about workers' health in oneweek courses, starting last week at KlOSli's Cincinnati center. Classes accomodating 40 will bo repeated five times, giving 200 compliance officers information on health to supplement their expertise on safety. SELIK0FF PREDICTS DEATH TOLL IF SERIOUS ERROR IN ASBESTOS STANDARD NOT CORRECTED The standard for asbestos established by the Department of Labor "is so v.rcr.-g and represents such serious hazard to uorUmen, tliat i advise its urgent revision,'-' br. Irving J. Selikoff of the Environmental Sciences Laboratory at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine of the City University of New York wrote Secretary James D. Hodgson Aug. 3. The proposed level is (1) much higher than actually now exists, (2) so high as to make totally ineffective, current efforts by both industry and labor to control the hazai.-d, Selikoff charged. The standard, which would allow workmen to be exposed to environments containing as many as 12 fibers per cc of air, contrasts with the approved level in Great Britain which is less than 1/5 this level. The U.S. standard of exposure "for more than even 10 minutes" would be sufficient to require that the workmen wear protective clothing and use an efficient respirator, according to Selikoff, Research in the asbestos trade of insulation work shows that work in areas with levels of 2-3 fibers per cc of air "has resulted in a very great increase of death due to cancer and to asbestosis." One in every five deaths among insulation workers is due to lung cancer, one in 10 to cancer of the pleura or peritoneum, and one in 10 to scarred lungs or asbestosis. Dire Prediction Drawing on calculations from the American Cancer Society, Selikoff predicted "that if the situation remains the same and does not improve, there will be more than 17,000 excess deaths of lung cancer among these men, as well as almost 10,000 unnecessary deaths of cancer of the pleura or peritoneum, 10,000 wholly preventable deaths of asbestosis ' - and many thousand other cancer deaths in this one trade alone. Thousands of deaths will occur in other industries, to add to the unhappy toll of this serious error,'-' he warned-. It is estimated there are approximately 100,000 men doing asbestos insulation work in the United States, in various industries and in various unions. Copies of Selikoff's letter were sent to officials of -the Asbestos Workers Union; United Steelworkers; Oil, Chemical, and Atomic Workers Unioii; United P.apermakers .-i? and Paperworkers; Internationa]. Chemical Workers; Textile Workers; the AFL-CIO and the Industrial Union Department; and the National Institute- for Occupational Safety and- Health. -. V CAPCO KIN 0001393 22$ Grant Street Parle Forest, Illinois 6olj66 July 20, 1971 Irvins J. Selikoff Division of Environmental Medicine Kt.` Sinai Hospital Hew York, New York . .. ' Dear Dr. Seliko'ff: ' In the July iG, Sunday edition of the New York Tirr.es, your Croup was.mentioned as one perfomiin" research on the effects of asbestos and cancer. As a civil engineer and sometime specifier of Transite asbestos pipe for unior mains, I am concerned about whether there is any correlation between .asbestos pipe used for water mains and health, la your croup aware of ary correlation between health and transite pipe water mains? Vcry truly, . I S? /. A ygp^/f****4 J' /l, o Ya//w;oho CAPCO KIN 0001394 . Si MOUNT SINAI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE !l oJTbc City University ofNew York PJPTH AVENUE AND l.OOTU STREET `NEW YORK, N.Y. 10033' Df/;,irl(iifiil of Community ZUiiciac July 26, 1971 RECEIVED Mr. Y. Eugene Yamamoto 225 Grant Street l3ark Forest Illinois 60466 Dear Mr. Yamamoto: V.'e knew of.no evidence that would suggest a correlation between the use of tronsite asbestos pipe for water mains and health. The data that :1s available concerning asbestos health hazards has been .'--sKorviated with air borne asbestos only, and in cir cumstances iii which the potential cup can::a oi: the -indi vi v.'ouj d have been many orders of magnitude greater than the scant numbers c fibres that might conceivably erode from transit?, pipe. Be that as it may, we have seen no evidence that a health hazard has. been associated with the use of this product Sincerely yours, IJS:cr Irving;-:J. ociiKorr, tun Profeskbr \ CAPCO KIN 0001395 7/ .... .is i. .csult of passage of llic Occupational Safely ....... Act and the State Safety Act. .. .ette.r to Labor Department Secretary James D. ,`lAPi Executive Director Stephen Stoughton .o. .i.-s.c......v/ assistance the Labor Department might be .line to ,-:ovidc. Stoughton listed two purposes for the safety program, "ilic fuM will be to brief top management on safety and ..eahii .'emulations for construction and the implications of the Ati regarding fines. The theme will be to make the eo:.;:..ctor aware of necessary costs dial will be incurred ...vatise of standards in effect. These facts will be conveyed ,i,lough toe conference method, using all reference and resource i.aiu available. The second purpose of (he ptogram is to inform, through ;.,e .uul.Mi.ip method, field supcivisors, supciinlendcms, .md toteii.eti of the recognition, avoidance, and prevention of unsate conditions and on the regnlalions applicable to !,,.s uor., environment. 'Hie program is planned to educate and inform both .uai.jgcn.fii; and labor. It is projected for two years to vlivei .,;e entire state of Indiana. The CIAPA represents n.uoo siaic contractors. O 10 AstlCS'.Cs 0ES7CS IS TOO IMPORTANT TO ECONOMY 3E STOPPED. RESEARCH COUNCIL REPORTS As.is loo important in the nation's technology ..... ......... try for its essential use to be stopped, a teporl .oy .iie National Academy of Sciences says. T.ie ic,-or; was prepared for the Environmental Pro.ee;.,.:. Agency by a special panel on asbestos and the >'o.:,,.ia;.'c on Biologic Effects of Atmospheric pollutants .. lit- Division of Medical Sciences, National Research .fvi.i described vaiious occupational diseases assoe....e>. v. Heavy inhalation of asbestos fiber and con..dcK.: ti.e .,,,estion of hazard to the general public from .-.e n., > ..not,nls of fiber that have been demonstrated to vNi'si ii) .!i. -iciu air. Regarding fibrosis of the lung, the report slates that "iiccup.ii.il,'-related asbeslosis can be effectively contiollcd will. ui'me fiber concentrations much higher" than any te gencii.i public may be exposed to. Cancer Concern Cu.iceiu::::- cancer, the report cited evidence th.v lung ccr associated with asbestos exposure will develop only . uh'iig druse workers with heavy and prolonged exposure, a ' ......... -v; -ftitind among the general public. iV.ootr.c.ionia, a rare cancer of the lining of the lung and c..vitv, occasionally ltas been found among iiv.:.= ir. proximity to uncontrolled asbestos plants n. m.iics ilowevcr, tire report comments that "there is no w.Uiiki. persons in the general population - without ..... p..i:*. uo.iseliold, or neighborhood exposures .i..v .-.l'-cb lisk of neoplasm." ...i warns against cxtiapolating "from the mm . .i.iv cxpci.ciice of those who arc directly and indiiccily 'lu'uvJ .isbestos in their employment to the gcnetal Occupotionol Sol OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY & HEALTH REPORTER public who have had moderate or slight exposure from ambient air." Tiic report notes the difficulty in making sticit projections due to the lack of reliable data and suggests that there be more epidemiological .studies:, especially of populations in lower exposure ranges. The report concludes "there is no evidence that the small number of fibers found in most members of the general population tiffed health or longevity." It recommends, however, that "major sources of man made asbestos emission into the atmosphere be defined and controlled." The report concluded that such controls arc feasible. Research STUDY CONDUCTED ON CAUSES OF DEATH FOR 3.2G3 SAN FRANCISCO LONGSHOREMEN Three hundred and fifty deaths fiom coronary heart disease wetc identified among 3.263 longshoiemen in an 18-year follow-up after mulliphasic screening examinations. The findings were reported by Dr. Ralph S. I'alTcnbargor. Ji., Dr. Alfred S. Cima. Mary Elizabeth Laughlir, and Rebecca A. Black in an article, "Characteristics m Li.,1, shoremen Related to Palal Coronaty Heart Disease ai'u. Stroke," in the July issue of "The American Jourr.ai i>; Rubiic lleallh." The researchers identified 93 men who died from stum, among the 3,263 longshoremen, aged 35-04 years ,u die lime of initial examination in 1951. Cargo handlers sustained coionary death tales t.r.v quaricr lower man men with less active jobs, expending `-. fewer calorics per work day. Differences in coion.,nmortality wore greatest at younger ages and decie.isco stcadiiy to disappearance at older ages. Dividing the population into high-and low-usk gi-uips delineated four other characteristics associated with mronary mortality: pre-existing heart disease, systolic hiood pressure above mean levels, cigarette smoking of one oi more packs per day, and weight-for-height above mean levels. Risk of coronary mortality accompanying cacti characteristic was greatet for less active individuals than tin cargo handlers. Men with less active jobs sustained stroke death talcs similar to those of cargo handles in the IS-ycar followup. Three other characteristics identified groups at high-risk of stroke mortality: pre-existing iicart disease, systolic blood pressure above mean levels, and abnormal giueose nte.uholism. Data suggest that physical activity influence* me myocardium or its function more than the atherosclerotic pueess. Industry MINERAL INDUSTRY SURVEYS REVEAL RETROGRESSION IN INJURY FREQUENCY Injury-fieqiicncy and severity rales for .'07.'; ,,i luineiai-i-xtiactive and |>ii;c.Viiuj> imlu-.liics /<-!/ '. and 7 peiccnl respectively Imm IWi data ..utns,' prclimitiaiy assessment -of company reports by the li.o-ra . of Mines. ** & Heolih Rc^drlor 3APCO KIN 0001396 dangers In the air we breathe Particles of certain widely used mineral substances are so smail that they can't be stopped by the excellent filter system in our noses, or by any ordinary means. If allowed to be present in your home or place of work or business, minute particles of some materials may lodge in your lungs and eventually cause cancer. The first report of lung cancer believed to have been caused indirectly by asbestos fibers was recorded in 1935. Many studies have since been reported in which examinations have been made of or autopsies per formed on persons who have been in direct contact with asbestos, cither in the mining and manufacturing phase or in connection with its many uses as an insulat ing material. Th nfft (g nM/*f nfl p nofcon greatly increases his chances of developing a really dan gerous disease called asbestosis if he is subjected for a time to the fine asbestos dust that is possibly present within one-half mile of an asbestos manufacturing plant in the country or anywhere within a considerable distance from the framewoik of a new building that is being fireproofed by spraying it with an asbestos-based product. (A single major tali building in New York City will receive nearly 5000 tons of asbestos spray, of which a great part floats off into the air of the city. It has been suggested that, for city dwellers, the hazard of lung cancer may be as great from inhalation of asbestos as from the smoking of cigarettes.) And while t.'ie symptoms of asbestosis, a non-maiignant lung disease, take years to develop, it woutd seem at this time that there is a good likelihood that after 20 to 30 years have elapsed, lung cancer will develop in a surprisingly high percentage of the cases. And the as bestos worker who smokes cigarettes regularly in creases his cancer risk enormously. 50 percent of 3000 autopsies in one study showed asbestos particles in tire lungs. Unfortunately, experts have now about concluded that a pra.'licai hazard and a definite long-term danger exists, not only for directly exposed persons, but for practically everyone who is forced to exist on the highly contaminated air found in most, urban and some rural areas. Once in the lungs, the asbestos particles, remain there throughout life. Even kindergarten chil dren have been exposed, in using asbestos powder with water as a form of modeling clay. The root of the problem Wiiy this comparatively sudden awareness of a danger that must have existed for two thousand years or more? Actually, modern medical researchers had to re sort to the electron microscope in order to identify positively the minute pieces of "encapsulated" mineral fiber. Many are so fine that they cannot be seen when floating in the air around us. And there are literally thousands of sources for the material in man-made products in our environment. The long fibers of asbestos, tike those of cotton and wool, for example, have' those qualities required for spinning the material into a thread and thence into fireproof garments, curtains, shields, ironing board . covers, house insulation, insulation for electric wires, and the like. The short fibers are mixed with.various binders, such as cements and plastics, and the mixture compressed into pipe coverings, brake linings, dutch faces, roofing and siding shingles, filter cloth, yarns and ropes, plaster, rubber goods, some paints, siding, paper, and many molded products. Actually, the num ber of products on the market which contain asbestos is believed to exceed 3000. However, there is a favor able trend; some manufacturers are no.w offering min eral fiber material for certain uses that does not con tain asbestos. Fortunately, the great majority of these products utilize the asbestos as a mixer or extender and bind it into some other material where it is not available in the free state, except when the material disintegrates with time and weather. When used in firm mixtures, as in asphalt roof coatings and in plastics, the likelihood that tiie fibers will separate and become airborne is greatly reduced, as is the danger of their being inhaled ir. harm ful amounts. Protective actions taken Serious re.'enrch lias been in progress for some years to * investigate the possible dangers to health that may be V SEPTEMBER 1971 / 23 CAPCO KIN 0001397 involved. Many companies have taken certain action needed to reduce the hazard. As an example, special plastic bags have been developed as containers so that water and dry asbestos can be mixed safely to be used as heat insulation on the exterior of heating boilers and pipes. New York City, Philadelphia, and the State of Cali fornia have taken action to control the manner in which buildings are sprayed with asbestos. Rules gov erning adequate enclosure of the area in which the spraying takes place and cleanup and disposal proce dures have been outlined. Indeed, following the initial action in April of 1970 in New York City, the hazard was considered sufficiently great that the mayor or dered the spraying of asbestos hailed wherever possible in all construction projects under supervision of the city government; the decision, at least in part, was based upon testimony presented by Dr. Irving J. Selikoff, of Mount Sinai Hospital School of Medicine, who is one of the modern pioneers in asbestos epidemiol ogy. Based upon work done by his group, Dr. Selikoff stated that lung cancer was the cause of death of al most 1 out of every 5 asbestos workers in the city in the past 27 years. The report, which summarized findings of examina tions of 632 asbestos insulation workers, covered a pe riod of 25 years. During that period, 358 persons in the group died. Of that pumber, 72 deaths were due to cancer of the lung or pleura. Statistically, in considera tion of normal mortality rates, only about 9 deaths would have been expected. The danger of mesothelial tumors exists not only among asbestos workers but also with others after only "apparently minimal and uim-ucL'upaiionai" exposure to asbestos dust, but usually after a long delay or latent period of forty years or more. Opinions differ % As is so often the case, there are some who feel that the reasons for concern regarding asbestos fiber inhala tion are not as well based as they might ba. Dr. George Wright, a pulmonary disease specialist in Cleveland, who has served industry' as consulting expert on asbestos, lias commented to the effect that some of the concern may be ill founded regarding the large quantities of asbestos supposedly put into the air from automobile brake lin ings. He stated that "the amount of asbestos fiber used in friction material in the United States was estimated at less than five percent of the total in 1965. And the high heat of friction destroys the asbestos, converting it to material no longer having the characteristics of asbestos.... "Scrfous exposures to asbestos fiber can occur in cer tain occupational and immediately adjacent environ ments but there is evidence that a low concentration of asbestos in the air breathed by the general public is not likely to be harmful." Dvon with the increased awareness of the potential dangers involved, the number of uses for asbestos con tinues to increase. Even in the home, there arc many areas, from roof--asbestos shingles--to cellar--asbestos insulation and cement on boiler and pipes--and on ironing boards, where asbestos is to be found in one form or another.'Asbestos board is much used, and sawing it in the hobby shop puts countless fibers into the air of a home. In California a bill has been introduced to prohibit the use of asbestos or fiber glass as linings in air duct systems of now buildings. Lately, talcum powder for babies has been found to contain substantial amounts of asbestos particles, and these are of course readily inhaled by infants and those who care for them. Talc dust alone presents problems similar to asbestos but the risks arc not so great. In late 1970, over 100,000 women's coats were manufactured and sold from a blend of melton-type doth imported from Italy which contained woo!, ny lon, and asbestos. While it is almost a practical impos sibility to recall the coats, according to Mr. H. Mendel- sund, an officer of the International Ladies Garment Workers Union, union members have been ordered not to cut or sew cloth containing asbestos. Tiie main reason why this cloth was made and im ported was because of the cost advantage it might offer due to the possibility of a lower import duty on as bestos material as against other fibers. If you Have sucii a coat--(he label will tell--it should be "taken out of circulation." Family Health reports that Dr. Selikoff's advice was that one should bury a coat that contains asbestos fibers. Fiber glass !ia au been under suspicion lor some time as a cause of respiratory injury. There have been suggestions that it might be harmful in view of its use in home furnishings and in the ducts of heating and cooling systems. Information available up to this time does not indicate any substantial danger from this cause, though it is established that "man-made vitreous fibers" have become lodged in human lungs. Pending availability of further information concerning the pos sibility of harm from glass fibers, wc suggest that city and state governments and individuals should not allow use of glass fiber in any part of a heating, cooling, or ventilating duct system of a home, office, or factory'. Glass fibers are regularly used in the form of a mat as a filter in warm air heating systems, but it is believed that in this use the danger of putting glass fibers of inhalable size into the air stream is not great. Everyone should be alert to the potential danger that exists in the handling or use of any articles made of or containing asbestos fibers or glass fibers. Wc do not know at this time how convincing the evidence by Dr. Wright tending to minimize the hazatd from asbestos may be. Our advice would be, in any event, to avoid contact with asbestos in every practicable way, espe cially in connection with building, heating, and plumb ing operations. On glass fibers as a source of skin irrita tion, see Consumer Bulletin, November 1969. HD / CONSUMER BULLETIN \* CAPCO KIN 0001398 Sonora, Calif. Union Democrat (Circ. D. 4,092) >vUG 1 2 13? 1 Jftccn>6 P. C. tt. *f. l(tS There may be dangerous asbestos particles in the air over New Melcnes reservoir accord ing to preliminary findings, the Army Corps of Engineers reported late yesterday. Carl Grec-nsrein, public affaris officer for the corns, said dust samples taken at New Melones bv researchers from Sacramento's McClellan Air Force base indicated "this may be the dangerous, cancer provoking particle.'1 He stressed, however, the finding is only preliminary and that the samples have been sent to experts in Cincinnati for confirmations. Test results arc not expected much before Aug. 20, Greensteirt said. At issue is di.M blowing ovev New Melones from the Pacilic Asbestos plant on the north side of Tulloch reservoir Particles falling the sky were first noticed by corps of engineers employees living in mobilehomes near the Melones dam project, and they requested an investigation. Philip Holmes, president of Pacific Asbestos Corp., at that time reacted by saying "someone pushed the panic burton." He discounted any danger from dust clouds blowing from the plant. "If there is any asbestos fiher there, it's in such minute quantities that it can't do any harm,'' he said. He pointed out the dust clouds have existed since the plant was opened 10 years ago and that no ill effects have bem felt by employees Grecnstein, however, yesterday said the ef fects of asbestos particles in one's lungs may not be felt for 20 years. He also confirmed once asbestos particles are taken into the body, the body has no way to flush them out. Should experts in Cincinnati support the Mc Clellan findings, what will the corps do? "We're not in any position to tell Pacific As bestos to quit operating," Grecnstein replied. He called the controversy a "highly charged political issue" and said' the corps "doesn't plan to issue a cease-and-desist order." Rather the corps would report its findings to the state air resources hoard and the federal department of labor so that either of them could take action, he noted. The corps main concern with ihc problem, said Grecnstein, is over "the heaiih hazard, if any. to our employees or our contractors' em ployees." CAPCO KIN 0001399