Document X73oV45pzQDmqGr5o1J7g6KEd

FILE NAME: Abex (ABX) DATE: 1973 DOC#: ABX093 DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION: Unpublished Presentation from FMSI Annual Meeting - Asbestos and the Friction Material Industry Assi^-ns ,\iro tue friitio:: tATr.;IAL industry Ir. I - U. Weaver o f R a y b e s to s - lla n h a tta n . I n c . , uho s e r v e s a s C hairm an of the F rictio n M a te ria ls Standards I n s titu te A sbestos Study C ocnittee addressed the Annual Membership M eeting of th e I n s t i t u t e . Mr. W eaver's a d d re ss was d e liv e r e d In V a il, C olorado on Wednesday m o rn in g , June 27, 1973. Mr. W eaver's ad d ress fo llo w s: When Ed (O risla n e ) ask e d me t o a tt e n d y o u r a n n u a l m e e tin g l a s t y e a r , I had to d e c lin e , w hich may have b ee n J u s t a s w e l l i n v iew o f th e co nfused s t a t u s o f b o th OSHA and EPA r e g u l a t i o n s a t th e tim e . T h is y e a r th in g s a r e on ly s l i g h t l y l e s s c o n f u s e d , b u t 1 am c l a d t o b e a b le t o be h e r e anyway t o a tte m p t t o f u l f i l l my r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s i n re p o rtin g to you as y o u r A sbestos Study Committee Chairm an. R ather than presen t a d e ta ile d statem en t co v erin g Committee a c t i v i t i e s fo r _ th e y e a r, I sh o u ld l i k e t o u se my tim e t o re v ie w some o f t h e more c o n tro v e rsia l and confused d e m e n ts o f th e F ed eral A sbestos R eg u latio n s, and give recommendations as to what I th in k th e sta n c e o f th e F ric tio n M aterials Industry should be in reg ard to them. In lie u of a d etailed rep o rt covering the p a st y e a r's a c tiv itie s , I have prepared a page and a h a lf sunasnary of th e C om m ittee's work from June '72 th ru June 1, 1973. Mr. D ris la n e w i l l c i r c u l a t e c o p ie s o f th is summary co anyone who may b e i n t e r e s t e d i n i t , and i f an y o f you . have questions or recommendations concerning our p a s t work o r fu tu re in te n tio n s , p lease f e e l fre e to b rin g them up h e r e , o r i f you p re fe r, tra n s m it them t o Ed f o r o u r review l a t e r . Probably the sin g le m ost s ig n ific a n t ev en t th a t occurred during the p a s t y ear on the s u b je c t o f a sb e sto s h a z a rd s was th e m eetin g o f the In te r n a tio n a l Agency f o r R esearch on C ancer th a t was h e ld a t Lyon, France la s t O ctober. T his m eeting was atte n d e d by more th an a hundred and th ir ty m edical re se a rc h e rs and re p re s e n ta tiv e s o f governm ent, in d u stry and lab o r from v ir tu a lly ev ery m ajor a sb e sto s consuming or producing country in th e w o rld . For fo u r days in te n s iv e s e s s io n s on a sb e sto s w ere h e l d 't r y - th r e e - d if f e r e n t- p a n e ls ,- - e a c h - m a d e uo o f te n t o tw enty-five of the forem ost m edical and s c ie n tif ic ex p e rts operating in the various fie ld s o f a sb e sto s-h e a lth re se a rc h . Follow ing the m eetings th e com m ittees issu ed a combined re p o rt on a s b e sto s can cers. 1 think the follow ing fiv e item s summarize t h e i r m ost Im portant ` conclusions: - (1) A ll major commercial types o f a sb e sto s can cause can cer. (2) Evidence su g g e sts th a t excess lung can cer i s n o t d e te c t a b le when o c c u p a tio n a l ex p o su re h as been low . ( J u s t what i s m eant by "low*' was n o t s t a t e d . ) P LA IN T IF F S j EXHIBIT I WV-06033 P-EXHIBIT-098 SCF-ALLF-04614 -2~ A sb eetss and The F ric tio n M a te ria l In d u s try (c o n t'd ) (3 ) E v id en ce h a s b ee n g r e a t l y s t r e n g t h e n e d t h a t a l l commer c i a l ty p e s o f a s b e s to s e x c e p t A n th o p h y llite may be re sp o n s ib le for m esotheliom a. (R isk is g re a te st w ith C ro cid o llte, le s s w ith Amosice, and a p p a re n tly s t i l l le s s w ith C h ry so tile .) (4) C ig a re tte smoking i s an Im p o rtan t fa c to r enhancing lung cancer ris k In asbestos w orkers. (5 ) Surveys o f o c c u p a tio n a l g ro u p s have shown a sm all excess r is k o f types o f can cer o th e r than b ro n c h ia l and m esothellal, esp ecially those of the g a stro -in te s tin a l tra c t. The most Im portant item h e re I s th e in c rim in a tio n o f a l l major typqs o f asb e sto s as c a u sa l ag en ts f o r carcinom a, p a r tic u la r ly mesothelioma. H ost o f the o th er item s only confirm o r s u b s ta n tia te previous conclusions. S in ce most of us use s u b s ta n tia l am ounts o f C h ry so tile asbestos In our fo rm u la tio n s, a s s o c ia tio n o f th i6 m a te ria l w ith mesothelioma and o th e r types of cancer i s of serio u s concern. A num ber o f I n d i v i d u a l s who a t t e n d e d th e IRAC m eetin g s came away w ith th e d e fin ite im pression th a t government re co g n itio n o f asbestos hazards h a s b een a c c o m p lish e d and h e n c e f o r t h s h o u ld b e ta k e n f o r g r a n te d . We c a n now lo o k to th e n e x t m a jo r e f f o r t b e i n g g e a re d tow ard w o rk e r educa tio n re g a rd in g o c c u p a tio n a l h e a lth h a z a rd s . The O ccupational Safety and H ealth Act re q u ire s in fo rm atio n be given by employers to workers concerning the degree of th e ir exposure along w ith in stru c tio n in ways fo r m inim izing ex p osure. T h e re fo re , i t i s incum bent on allem ployere w hose w orkers h a n d le o r come i n c o n ta c t w ith a s b e s to s - c o n ta in in g m a te r ia ls to p ro v id e some k in d o f i n s t r u c t i o n or tr a in in g to educate th e w orkers co n cern in g p o t e n t i a l h a z a rd s and means o f av o id in g then w herever p o 6 6 ib le. A ccordingly, i t would be prudent fo r a l l fric tio n m a t e r i a l s m a n u fa c tu re rs t o d e v e lo p p ro g ram s t o a s s u r e ad e q u a te com . m u n ic a tio n w ith t h e i r em ployees r e g a r d i n g a s b e s to s d u s t h a z a r d s , and . to inform them of m on ito rin g r e s u l t s , good work p r a c tic e s , and th e ir r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s i n com plying w ith OSHA r e g u l a t i o n s . I f su ch m easures a r e n o t ta k e n p ro m p tly and p ro p e rly by management,i n d u s t r y w i l l le a v e i t s e l f v i d e open f o r i n t e n s e , and i n my o p in io n ju s tif ie d , c ritic is m by organized la b o r, as w ell as p o te n tia l severe enforcem ent a c tio n by governm ent, and attack , by any number o f so c ia l and e n v iro n m e n ta l a c t i v i s t o r g a n i z a t i o n s . I f we d o n 't do t h i 6 o u rse lv e s, be assu red th a t someone e ls e w i l l jump on th e bandwagon and do i t i n a way t h a t w i l l n o t b e t o o u r b e n e f i t . Ue can e x p e c t more and more a c tiv ity by organized la b o r tow ard e d u c a tin g and tra in in g workers reg ard in g h e a lth and s a fe ty problem s and in p o in tin g out to workers w hat th e ir em ployers' re s p o n s ib ilitie s are concerning these m atters. A sbestos and The r r ic tio n H a te ria l In d u stry (c o n t'd) eny union a c ti v i s t s are re a lly fu rio u s w ith governm ent's f a ilu r e to pursue th e p ro v isio n s of sa fe ty and h e a lth re g u la tio n s to th e l e t t e r , and th ere appears to be a good opportunity fo r in d u stry to re le a s e r e lia b le in fo rm atio n concerning asb esto s hazards b o th to th e ir emplovees and to t h e i r custom ers b e fo re more inflam m atory in fo rm a tio n o f th i s type is a ire d in th e media under organized, la b o r's b a n n e r. These r u l e s and r e g u la tio n s pose much more s e v e re problem s f o r o th e r segm ents of the asbestos in d u stry , p a rtic u la rly asbestos te x tile m anufacturers, than they do fo r mo6t f r ic tio n m a te ria l m anufacturers. I have been involved in asbestos products m anufacturing fo r ov er tw entyf i v e y e a rs a n d h a v e v i s i t e d dozens o f p l a n t s and am aw are o f o n ly a few f r ic tio n m a te ria ls products m anufacturing operations th a t I c o n sid er to r e p r e s e n t m a jo r p ro b lem s i n a c h ie v e in g conform ance t o e i t h e r OSRA. o r ETA r e q u ir e m e n ts , i n c l u d i n g th e 2 f i b r e p e r cc th e r e s h b ld l i m i t v a lu e . S in c e s i g n i f i c a n t p o l a r i z a t i o n may b e e x p e c te d alw ays t o e x i s t betw een management and la b o r and betw een management and en v iro n m en tal groups concerning a sb e st0 3 -h ealth su b je c ts , and sin ce c o n tro l o r conformance t o b o th EPA an d OSHA r e g u l a t i o n s a p p e a rs t o b e g e n e r a l l y f e a s i b l e , a s f a r as f r i c t i o n m a t e r i a l s a r e c o n c e rn e d , my recom m endation t o f r i c t i o n m aterial m anufacturers is th a t they proceed as rapidly as p o ssib le tow ards conform ance w ith th e re g u la tio n s . A lso I recommend a v o id in g in c lin a tio n s to m is in te rp re t p ro v isio n s where the in te n t of th e r e g u l a t i o n i s c l e a r , b u t t h e w ord in g may b e s u b j e c t t o q u e s t i o n . T h ere has been c o n sid e ra b le d isre g a rd of a number of p ro v isio n s m ainly in th e areas o f la b e lin g , m onitoring, employee ed u c atio n , p e rso n a l pro te c tio n , w aste d is p o s a l, and use of w arning sig n s by segm ents o f . asbestos p roducts m anufacturing, and I b e lie v e th is ap p lies to f r ic tio n m a te ria l t o some e x te n t. One o f th e m ost o b v io u s ite m s h a s to do w ith i n d u s t r y 's r e l u c t a n c e t o ac cep t, a s b e s to s p r o d u c ts l a b e l i n g as re o .u ire d by OSBA. T h ere h a s b een much a d v e r t i s i n g o f a s b e s to s t e x t i l e p ro d u c ts c i t i n g th e b e n e f i t s o f treatm ents o r coatings th at purport to lock the fib re in to th e product i n such way t h a t i t can n o t become a ir b o r n e d u rin g u s e . W hile th e s e claim s probably a re tr u e to v ary in g degrees depending on th e n a tu re of th e p ro d u c t, I t s u s e , and th e way in w hich i t i s h a n d le d , I do n o t think th is claim is a t a ll applicable to fric tio n m ateria ls. ' I know o f no way any o f us can b e a b s o l u t e l y s u r e t h a t h i s f r i c t i o n products, re g a rd le ss o f w hether they are eold as o rig in a l equipm ent o r on the rep lacem en t m arket, w i l l n o t b e su b jecte d to a d d itio n a l operations o r a lte ra tio n s in th e fie ld th a t could re s u lt in excessive exposure of w orkers o r bystanders to airborne asbestos fib re . I have been ap p a lle d to le a rn of a number o f in sta n c e s w here th is problem . has o ccu rred , and some of th e se cases involved peo p le th at- c e r ta in ly m ight have b e e n e x p e c te d to know b e t t e r . -L - A sbestos and The F r ic tio n M a te r ia l I n d u s try (c o n t' d) I f tb l6 k in d o f t h i n g o c c u rs i n f a b r i c a t i o n o p e r a tio n s o f m ajo r OE c u s to m e rs. I t a p p e a rs to me t h e r e c a n b e no argum ent ab o u t th e n eed fo r educational measures to reduce chances of unnecessary exposure d u rin g g rin d in g , d r i l l i n g o r c u t t i n g o p e r a t i o n s . To th o s e who a rg u e th a t lab elin g o r o th e r types o f w arning need n o t apply to re p la c e ment m aterials because fa b ric a to rs o r sp o ile rs handling replacem ent q u a n titie s are exposed re la tiv e ly in te rm itte n tly , I say em phatically t h i s j u s t a in ' t n e c e s s a rily so! L arge volume replacem ent u se rs p re se n t major p o te n tia l h a z a rd s, and even sm all Job shops can n e e d le s s ly expose p eo p le'to high fib re co n cen tratio n s i f operations are perform ed w ith o u t c o n t r o l s . T h a t t h e s e may b e i n t e r m i t t e n t and o f s h o r t d u r a ti o n .does not preclude p o s s ib ility fo r occurrence o f adverse h ea lth e f fe c ts i n h y p e r-s u s c e p tib le in d iv id u a ls , o r i n l e s s s e n s itiv e in d iv id u a ls who may re c e iv e e x c e e d in g ly h ig h d o se s o f s h o r t d u r a tio n b u t who may b e * sm okers, o r who may e x p e rie n c e e f f e c t s b e c a u s e o f sy n erg ism w i t h o th e r m a te r ia ls t o w hich th e y may b e ex p o sed e i t h e r a t w ork o r e ls e w h e re . To me, la b e lin g a l l c o n ta in e r s o r p a c k a g e s o f a s b e s to s - c o n ta in in g fr ic tio n m aterial i6 th e very le a s t th e in d u stry can do to f u l f i l l moral o b lig atio n to i t s custom ers, t h e i r employees, and th e p u b lic and a t th e same tim e conform w ith minimum'-requirem ents o f th e O ccupational S afety and H eeltb A ct. X s e rio u sly question w hether mere la b e lin g i s eoough C o f u l f i l l t h i s re q u irem en t. I t has been ' r suggested by o th ers as w e ll as n y s e lf s e v e ra l tim es in th e p a st . Vr' th a t a d d itio n a l in s tr u c tio n s , o f a more comprehensive n a tu re than i s p ra c tic a l to provide on a la b e l, b e in s e rte d in sid e each package where a p o s s ib ility e x is ts th a t th e p ro d u ct m ight be used in such manner th a t an a irb o rn e d u st problem could b e c re a te d . A number of responsible asbestos products m anufacturers already are follow ing t h i s p ro c e d u re , and th e r e i s a good p o s s i b i l i t y t h a t i c may b e made mandatory In fu tu re re g u la tio n s . ^Adoption of th e s e m easures by In d u s try would show good f a i t h tow ard compliance and should reduce p o s s i b il i t i e s of fu tu re c r itic is m by consumer p r o t e c t io n g ro u p s. I d o u b t v e r y much c h a t i t w ould h av e any s ig n if ic a n t - e f f e c t <ki -s a le s -consum ption jaf a s b e s to s f r i c t i o n m a te r ia ls . I know o f no s u b s t i t u t e f o r a s b e s to s i n norm al a u to m o tiv e f r ic ti o n m a te ria l s e r v ic e , and I know o f l i t t l e or no n o tic e a b le e ffe c t lab elin g has had on o th e r p ro d u cts where cautionary la b e lin g has been used thus fa r. ' Keep in mind t h a t UlOSH and th e OSltA A d v iso ry Committee recommended a much more s e v e re l a b e l th a n th e one we a r e t a l k i n g a b o u t. T h is s u b je c t was h e a te d ly d e b a te d d u r in g t h e OSUA A dvisory Com m ittee d e lib e ra tio n s, and th e ir f in a l recommendation c a lle d fo r use of the word "Danger" in s te a d o f "C au tio n " and s p e c if ic a lly m entioned th a t breaching a sb e sto s causes c a n c e r. Very fra n k ly , 1 was exceedingly t \ _~3- A sbestos and The F ric tio n M ateria l In d u stry (c o n t'd) s u r p r i s e d v h e n th e f i n a l OS'dA S ta n d a rd came o u t i n f a v o r o f c o n s id e r a b ly m ild e r w o rk in g . Mow 1 am p e rp le x e d t h a t I n d u s t r y r e s i t s th e OSHA l a b e l i n g r e q u ir e m e n t a s v ir g o r o u s ly as i t d o e s. Ilaoy o c h e r e le m e n ts o f th e CSHA R e g u la tio n s came o u t m o re -fa v o ra b ly toward in d u s try than th e recoum endations th a t were subm itted by N10SC and t h e A d v iso ry C om m ittee, and s t i f f r e s i s t a n c e by I n d u s tr y w i l l b e n e e d e d t o p r e v e n t OSHA from s t r e n g t h e n i n g t h e r e g u la t io n s i n months t o come. Ue can e x p e c t c o n s id e r a b le e f f o r t to be made by a n ti-in d u s try elem ents o f th e m edical p ro fessio n , by organized lab o r, and by e n v iro n m e n ta l g ro u p s who w ant th e a irb o rn e s ta n d a r d low ered from 2 f i b r e s p e r c c t o l f i b e r p e r cc o r even l e s s . Some I n d iv id u a ls even sp e a k o f a s b e s t o s i n te rm s o f z e ro TLV, w h ic h , o f c o u r s e , i s com pletely Im p ra c tic a l and would r e s u lt in v ir tu a l banning o f * m ining and u se o f a sb e sto s fo r anything. A n o th er c o n t r o v e r s i a l s u b j e c t i s f i b r e m o n ito r in g . T h is i s p r e t t y much o f. a d i s a s t e r a r e a b e c a u s e o f la c k o f c o n fid e n c e i n t h e membrane f i l t e r method f o r s a m p lin g a n d a n a ly z in g f o r a i r b o r n e a s b e s to s . Much o f t h i s problem is a t t r i b u t a b l e to the n a tu re of th e o p e ra tio n , which In v o lv es c o n s id e ra b le Judgem ent in a d d itio n to te c h n ic a l competency on th e p a r t o f th e p e o p le performin', th e t e s t s . Even when perform ed by p ra cticed in d iv id u a ls under the b e st p o ssib le co n d itio n s, the method Is s u b je c t to w ide v a r ia tio n s in r e s u lt s . H eedless to sa y ,, when perform ed by r e l a t i v e l y in ex p erien ced p erso n n el under th e w idely varying co n d itio n s th a t e x is t in th e f ie ld and between d iffe re n t l a b o r a t o r i e s , r e s u l t s can b e e x tre m e ly v a r i a b l e . I n my o p in io n , th e method I s n o t a t a l l s u i t a b le fo r enforcem ent p u rp o se s, b u t can be u sed t o good a d v a n ta g e b y i n d u s t r y f o r p o l i c i n g i t s own o p e r a tio n s and f o r - d e t e r m i n i n g w h e r e .t o d e v o te c o n t r o l e f f o r t s w ith maximum advantage o r p o t e n t i a l fo r Improvement. In s p ite o f i t s . d e f ic ie n c ie s , I th in k th e menbrane f i l t e r nethod w ill p e r s is t fo r o u ite some tim e, b u t I w i l l not be a t a l l s u rp rise d i f f u t u r e em p h asis b y OSHA s h i f t s tow ard w ork p r a c tic e , r e g u la tio n s r a t h e r th a n m o n i to r in g t o _a -n u m e ric a l s t a n d a r d . Another c o n tro v e rs ia l item has been the p ro te c tiv e c lo th in g re q u ire-- ment. T his h as c re a te d co n sid erab le q u e stio n and c o n tro v e rsy , p a rtic u la rly In th e t e x t i l e in d u stry where c e ilin g lim its a re ` d i f f i c u l t t o c o n t r o l on c e r t a i n o p e r a t i o n s . D i f f e r e n t OSHA regional o ffic e s have applied d iffe re n t In te rp re ta tio n s to the p r o t e c t i v e c l o t h i n g re q u ir e m e n t, and i t 's h a r d f o r me to s e e how some of them ca n b e a s l i b e r a l on I n te r p r e t a t i o n as th ey a r e . The re g u la tio n s p e c if ic a lly c a lls fo r f u l l body co v e r.in clu d in g lo v es, h a t, and fo o t co v erin g , where le v e ls exceed th e c e ilin g " A sb esto s and The " r lc r lo n r a t e r i a l In d u stry (c e n tV ) l i m i t . In s p i t e o t h i s , c e r t a i n OSHA r e g io n a l o f f i c e s ta k e th e p o s itio n th a t any p ro te c tiv e c lo th in g , even as scanty as a sh o rt sleev e s s h ir t and tro u s e rs , i s adequate, provided th is clo th in g is changed b e fo re th e employee leav e s th e p la n t. P erso n ally I b e lie v e th is le n ie n t In te rp re ta tio n provides e ffe c tiv e p ro tec tio n fo r nose e x p o su re s, and 1 concur, t h a t th e im p o rta n t th in g i s to make su re th e employee d o e s n 't tak e th e contam inated clo th in g o u t o f the p la n t. O th e r OSHA o f f i c e s s t i c k t o th e l e t t e r o f th e re q u ir e m e n t, w hich c r e a t e s a m ajo r problem on many o p e r a t i o n s where d isc o m fo rt from f u l l c o v e r .c lo th in g can have a very s ig n if ic a n t e ffe c t on o perator e ffic ie n c y . T his re q u ire n e n t is under v ig o ro u s a tta c k by companies th a t are h a v in g problem s w ith i t . no doubt some judgem ent by th e O ccu p atio n al S a fe ty and H ealth Review Commission o r the F ed eral c o u rts w i l l be forthcom ing concem ine th is elem ent of the re g u la tio n s, and i t is to b e hoped th a t fu tu re r e v is io n s o f th e r u l e w i l l p erm it more f l e x ib ility than the e x is tin g wording does. . 9 H a ste d i s p o s a l h a s c r e a t e d p ro b lem s w ith b o th OSUA nad ETA re g u la t i o n s , and some f r i c t i o n m a t e r i a l m a n u fa ctu rers a lre a d y have e x te n s iv e f a c i l i t i e s in th e w orks t o cope w ith th e se problem s. Of p a rtic u la r in te re s t is the p e lle tiz a tio n of fric tio n m aterial w aste to reduce d u st to a form th a t avoids n ecessity fo r bagging or otherw ise c o n ta in e riz in g th e m a te ria l. This also reduces o r elim inates' gen eratio n o f fu g itiv e d u st during d isp o sal in la n d f ills . Severalm anufacturers have in s ta lle d ex ten siv e p e lle tiz in g system s to solve t h e i r w aste d is p o s a l problem s, and th is approach appears to be acceptable t o b o th EPA and OSHA a s w e l l a s s t a t e e n v iro n m e n ta l c o n t r o l a g e n c ie s . O th er approaches have been to u t i l i z e w et d isp o sa l methods and, of c o u rs e , some m a n u fa c tu re rs a r e b agging and la b e lin g th e d ry w a ste , w here w et m ethods o r p e l l e t i z i n g a r e im p ra c tic a l. Where bags o r o th er containers are used fo r u a ste d isp o sa l, they should be la b e l e d i n a c c o rd a n c e w ith OSH/.. . _ K edical exam ination requirem ents have presented problem s, p a rtic u la rly th e one o f d e te rm in in g w h a t c o n s t i t u t e s " a s b e s to s e x p o s u re " . Some companies have adopted th e a ttitu h e t h a t . a l l w orkers, 'in c lu d tn g - a f iite and research p eople, even though they a re not norm ally considered to be exposed to asb esto s, should be included In the m edical su rv eillan ce program . On t h e o t h e r b a n d , many seem t o fo lltx / th e ta c k t h a t anyone exposed t o one f i b r e p e r c c o r l e s s n eed n o t b e in c lu d e d . Hy a d v ic e would b e to check everybody where th e re i s any doubt about a c tu a l exposure. I could dw ell a t co n sid e ra b le len g th on o th er problems and in co n siao f th e OSHA R e g u la tio n s an d t h e i r v a r io u s i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s , b u t b e lie v e I p ro b a b ly have expounded on t h i s enough f o r th e moment. . However, th e one main p o in t 1 want to g e t acro ss i s t h a t any - 7- A s b e sto s and The F r i c t i o n r a t e r i a l I n d u s t r y com parison of the e x is tin g re g u la tio n s w ith in d u s try 's p o s itio n as s ta te d in th e ir in p u t to th e government p rio r to prom ulgation o f th e r e g u l a t i o n , and com pared w ith th e recom m endations o f N10SU and th e OSHA A dvisory C o m m ittee, w i l l r e a d i l y i n d i c a t e t h a t th e e x i s t i n g OSHA s t a n d a r d , w i t h t h e one s e r i o u s e x c e p tio n o f th e two f ib r e s p e r cc li m i t to b e lcqiosed in 1976, follow s id d u s tr y 's p o sitio n ra th e r c lo se ly . I f I appear to be defending th e present OSHA A sb e sto s P e c u l a t i o n s , i t ' s on ly b e c a u s e I am v e ry much aw are o f how much more s c r i c t t h e s e r u l e s w ould b e i f th e recom m endations o f iilOSH and th e A d v iso ry C om m ittee h ad b e e n fo llo w e d . I do u b t t h a t many in th e i n d u s t r y r e c o g n iz e o r r e a l i z e j u s t how c lo s e th e y may h a v e come t o b e in g r e g u la t e d o u t o f e x i s t e n c e . Future occupational sa fe ty and h e a lth le g is la tio n probably w ill r e c t i f y num erous i n a d e q u a c ie s i n p r e s e n t r u l e s and may a m e lio r a te some a s p e c ts o f e x i s t i n g o c c u p a tio n a l s a f e ty and h e a lth s ta n d a rd s . However, 1 s e r i o u s l y d o u b t t h a t much r e l a x a t i o n i f any i s t o b e . expected in regard to th e A sbestos R egulations. I th in k the " in d u stry is going to have to mount a very determ ined e f f o r t to prevent these re g u la tio n s from being tig h ten ed in the fu tu re . The EPA r e g u l a t i o n s c o n c e r n in g a n b ie n t a i r c o n t r o l o f a s b e s to s a r e another r.a c te r. Although i t was resp o n sib le fo r i n i t i a l l y tagging a s b e s to s as a h a z a rd o u s p o l l u t a n t , s i n c e d o in g so EPA h a s b e e n much le ss d ilig e n t in pursuing i t s announced in te n tio n s tow ard re g u la tio n o f th e m a t e r i a l s i t d e c l a r e d h a z a rd o u s . EPA f i r s t d e c la r e d a s b e s to s a h a za rd o u s a i r p o l l u t a n t or. March 31, 1971, and p u b lis h e d p ro p o se d re g u la tio n s December 7 o f th e same y e a r . H earings w ere h e ld and mud) in d u s t r y in p u t was a c c e p te d and v e ry d e l i b e r a t e l y re v ie w e d by EPA- b e fo re they f i n a l l y is s u e d th e n a tio n a l E m issions S ta n d a rd on A p ril 6 f th is y e a r. T his r e g u la tio n was prom ulgated n e a rly a y e a r l a t e r than c a lle d fo r under th e requirem ents of th e F ederal C lean A ir A ct. t t h i s EPA h a s b e e n u n d e r c o n s id e r a b le c r i t i c i s m e v e r s i n c e . In a d d itio n t o b e in g l a t e , th e EPA s t a n d a r d i s a l o t l e s s s t r i n g e n t than I -or-any .ot h e r I n d u s t r y .p e o p le , who h a v e fo llo w e d i t s d ev e lo p ment, ex pected. H early a l l th e o b je c tio n s voiced by ln d u sty concern in g d ie o r ig in a lly p roposed s ta n d a rd were removed b e fo re th ey issu e d th e f i n a l r e g u la tio n s . In a d d itio n , th ey m odified some requirem ents to the e x te n t th a t no one in in d u stry ex p ected , o r even would have had the tem erity, to r e q u e s t, in m eetings where th ese s u b je c ts were d is c u s s e d b etw e en i n d u s t r y r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s a n d EPA. I n e s s e n c e , th e s t a n d a r d b o i l s down t o t h e fo llo w in g s ta te m e n t as f a r as em issions are concerned: There s h a ll be no v is ib le em issions to o u tsid e a i r from any a s b e s to s m ill o r m anufacturing o p e ra tio n except when a s p e c ifie d method o f - a i r c le a n in g , a ls o p a rt o f th e sta n d a rd s, is used before the em ission escapes. In general, the a i r cleaning systems- s p e c ifie d , f i l t e r asb esto s em issions to the p o in t chat v is ib le em issions, ocher than p o s s ib le condensed w a te r vapor, would not be produced anyway. -E-- A sbestos and The F ric tio n ila tc r ia l In d u stry O ther requirem ents concerning use of ta ilin g s fo r su rfacin g roads, th e re g u la tio n of d em o litio n a c ti v i t i e s , and. co n tro lled ap p licatio n of spray-on m aterials are o f l i t t l e concern to fric tio n m aterials p r o c e s s o r . Our b ig g e st concern lie s w ith the em ission standard, which w ill re q u ire th e tig h te n in g up o f dust c o lle c tio n , f a c i l it i e s and w a ste d is p o s a l practice* w herever f u g itiv e dust problems occur. The b i g g e s t p ro b le m w ith EPA r e g u l a t i o n I h a v e found th u s f a r h a s been non-uniform in te rp re ta tio n o f w hat c o n stitu te s a v is ib le em ission. I know th e EPA p e o p le who d r a f t e d t h e r e g u l a t i o n in te n d e d t h i s t o mean j u s t w hat i t s a y s . I f i t * s v i s i b l e under any co n d itio n w hatso e v e r , and EPA a p p ro v e d a i r c le a n i n g s y s te m s a r e n o t i n u s e , th e em ission is in v io la tio n . Since m ost f r ic tio n m aterials m anufacturers a l r e a d y a r e em p lo y in g b a g h o u s e s t h a t m eet EPA s ta n d a r d s f o r c le a n in g t h e ir exhaust a i r stre a m s, i t i s u n lik e ly chat any severe im pact w i l l o c c u r t o t h e I n d u s t r y a s a w h o le on a c c o u n t o f th e EPA r e g u la tio n s a s th e y new s ta n d . T hose few m an u fa c tu re rs who are, r e ly in g on w e t d u s t c o l l e c t o r s t h a t d o n o t m eet t h e EPA s ta n d a r d may have p ro b le m s . The b e s t way t o b e s u r e o f m e e tin g EPA re q u ire m e n ts i s to sharpen up on m aintenance and o p e ra tio n o f e x is tin g ba^iouse f i l t e r s and re p la c e e x is tin g w et c o lle c to r s w ith baghouse f i l t e r s to elim inate v is ib le em issions. I n sum m ary, th e OSHA and EPA A s b e s to s H e g u la tio n s a r e a lo e m ore l e n i e n t th a n many i n t e r e s - t e d and c o n c e rn e d p a r t i e s w is h . De can e x p e c t p r e s s u r e t o h a v e th em t i g h t e n e d . F r i c t i o n m a te r ia ls manu f a c t u r e r s sh o u ld s u p p o rt A sb esto s In d u s try e f f o r ts to have them d.tigaced i n h o p es th e y a t l e a s t a r e n ' t made more s e v e r e . I n th e m eantim e, we sh ould conform to th e re g u la tio n s to p ro te c t our employees and our custom ers and to avoid c r itic is m and enforcem ent a c tio n s. Your A sbestos Study Com m ittee w i l l co n tin u e to follow th e in te rp re -- # c a tio n o f e x is tin g r e g u la tio n s , th e tre n d of proposed changes, and th e developm ent o f new m e d ic a l and s c i e n t i f i c stu d y m a te r ia l t h a t nay a f f e c t f u t u r e r e g u l a t i o n o f a s b e s to s p ro d u c ts . Ue welcome y o u r q u e s t i o n s and any i n p u t y o u may b e a b le t o make c o n c e rn in g our a c tiv itie s.