Posted on October 30, 2015
Join the global #AsbestosChat conversation on November 3rd from 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm ET with guest moderator, Alex Formuzis from the Environmental Working Group (EWG)Action Fund, Asbestos Nation.
The #AsbestosChats are hosted by David Cant, Managing Director of Veritas Consulting Safety Services and ADAO.
The #AsbestosChat topics will be:
Q1) How have you been impacted by asbestos and/or mesothelioma?
Q2) Where is asbestos in your home or community?
Q3) Who are your ban asbestos champions in your country?
Q4) What are you doing to protect the rights of asbestos victims or to ban asbestos?
Q5) What jobs or trades are most at risk for harm from asbestos exposure?
Earlier this year, our friends at EWG, through its EWG Action Fund arm, launched a national campaign, Asbestos Nation, to increase public awareness about the pervasiveness of asbestos, which is still lethal and legal in the U.S. Through a combination of research, advocacy and media, the campaigns is working to elevate the serious threats asbestos still poses to millions of Americans.
EWG Action Fund is dedicating much of its resources to fighting against efforts by the asbestos industry and its lobbyists to get legislation through Congress that would delay and deny compensation to asbestos victims and their families. The so-called FACT Act, backed by such outfits as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Koch Industries and Honeywell, would also put these victims at heightened risk of identity theft by forcing onto the internet sensitive, personally-identifiable information like medical records, their names and even part of their Social Security numbers.
EWG Action Fund is also pushing hard to see another piece of legislation adopted in Congress that would give Americans more information about the whereabouts of asbestos in their communities. The Reducing Exposure to Asbestos Database Act, or READ Act, would require companies that manufacture, import or handle asbestos to report that information annually to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. They would be obligated to disclose whether any of these products were in publicly accessible locations over the previous year. The reports would be available in a public online database.
This is not the first time EWG and the EWG Action Fund have taken on the issue of asbestos. Back in 2004, in its groundbreaking 2004 investigation “Asbestos: Think Again,” EWG Action Fund documented how thousands of Americans die each year from asbestos-related diseases.
As the global struggle continues, we are united by a common mission – to end the asbestos man-made disaster and protect asbestos victims’ civil rights.
We, @davidgcant, @AsbestosNation, and @Linda_ADAO, are looking forward to chatting with you on November 3rd.
Linda Reinstein