Join us on the right side of history — SIGN and SHARE ADAO’s Petition to the U.S. EPA to Ban Asbestos Without Loopholes or Exemptions
Posted September 10, 2017
There is a famous quote — “When the U.S. sneezes, the whole word catches a cold.”
When it comes to asbestos, this adage is especially true for those of us in countries like Brazil, where asbestos is still mined and exported. With asbestos still legal in the U.S., hundreds of tons continue to be imported every year — in 2016, 95% of that imported asbestos came from Brazil. This means that thousands of Brazilian workers live under the constant threat of asbestos disease as they toil to in the name of profit for negligent and greedy corporations in America and around the world.
Anti-asbestos activists in Brazil, including ABREA, have been fighting tooth and nail for many years to achieve a ban and seek justice for the many thousands of asbestos victims in the country. We face incredible political pushback in our efforts to institute a patchwork national ban one state at a time. In fact, the Brazilian Supreme Court recently handed down a ruling regarding the constitutionality of a ban in the state of São Paolo. Thankfully, the ruling upheld the ban, and it also outlawed the use of chrysotile in the 11 Brazilian states with asbestos bans. This is a huge step forward for Brazil and the global anti-asbestos movement, but it took decades of weathering incredible opposition to achieve this victory.
As hard as activists on the ground in Brazil may fight to ban this deadly mineral, a U.S. ban on asbestos would be the ultimate game-changer. ABREA campaigns revolve around protecting public health and the environment, but ultimately nothing puts a stop to production so quickly as disappearing demand.
With the political corruption we see in Brazil and globally, we will be hard pressed to fully win the battle against asbestos on a moral argument alone. If we defer to economics and work together, we can and will force asbestos producers and consumers to put an end to their deadly trade.
Fernanda Giannasi, Associação Brasileira Dos Expostos Ao Amianto – Abrea