Document qdByJE8RwxXn9JnO560244eG5

FILE NAME: Asbestos Cement Pipe and Sheet (ACPS) DATE: 1986 Jan 27 DOC#: ACPS119 DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION: A/C Pipe Producers Press Release - Industry Response to EPA Proposed Rule-making /C Pipe Producers A sso ciatio n 1400 Witran IM 9v<ud Suit# K8 Adlesion, VugloiojaZO m)> 8<IW!sS* January 27, i 996 IN D U ST R Y RESPONSE. TO E P A PRO PO SED R U LEM A K IN G On January 23, 1986, the UJ5. Eiwlrenmental P ro te c t! Agency CEPA) eruw nced it w ill propose a rule prohibiting the manufacture and sale o f osbestos-cement (A / O pipe end fittin g s. it i$ important that you understand that this w ill be q proposal for comment, not g final rule that has the force o f low. The manufacturers o f A/C pipe" want you to Icrww'tSwf they plan to expose the proposed ban through E P A 's ruiemdking process and, If necessary, the courts. This process probably will last for years, Therefore, it is the Industry's intention to continue producing and selling A/C pipe products. This decision is founded on the firm belief that workers manufacturing end installing A/C pipe ere not ot Increased risk , nor Ss the general public, (Ingested asbestos v ia drinking water is not an E P A concern in this proposed rulemaking.) E P A 's proposal w ill be issued under authority o f the Toxic Substances Control A ct. This low empowers the Agency to regulate products if, in the judgement of the E P A Adm inistrator, they represent "unreasonable risks*. The proposal w ill express the opinion that there m ay be additional risks to workers already protected by Occupational Safety and H ealth Adm inistration (Q SHA) regulation -- including the stringent asbestos occupational standard which w ill be in place by mid-1986. We disagree on tw o counts. First, E P A has no legal authority to regulate workplaces. Second, even if the Agency hod legal authority, the "risk s" of m anufacturing A /C pipe are neither unreasonable nor significant. For w ell aver a decode, the A /C pipe industry has w red E P A 's interests that the manufacture and use o f A / C pipe be as safe as scientifically and economically feasible. We have labored responsibly and continuously to com ply w ith environmental regulations. D uring th is period the follow ing facts formed the basis o f Industry's position: o A sbestos is unique and irreplaceable in the manufacture o f A /C pipe. The risk s , if any, from occupational exposures to asbestos have been m inim ized through manufacturers' com pliance with O SH A standards and use o f industry-recommended work practices for A /C pipe field operations o There is no evidence that current environmental discharges from A /C pipe plants, if they occur ot oil, result in a risk to the general public. o A ban on A /C pipe is not supported by m edical/seten I ifie evidence. -over- 6fi2