FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 13, 2025

THE ASBESTOS DISEASE AWARENESS ORGANIZATION OPPOSES ATTEMPT TO DELAY ASBESTOS RULE LITIGATION

The Environmental Protection Agency’s Request for a 120-Day Extension Threatens Hard-Fought Asbestos Protections

Washington, D.C. – The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO), together with the United Steelworkers (USW), filed a brief today with the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit strongly opposing the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) request to hold in abeyance the Fifth Circuit case reviewing the Part 1 Chrysotile Asbestos rule for 120 days. EPA has sought this extension so the new Administration can reassess, and potentially weaken, the rule. 

EPA’s Part 1 asbestos rule, announced on March 18, 2024, prohibits the importation and use of chrysotile asbestos in six applications, including chlor-alkali production. ADAO sought judicial review in April 2024 to safeguard the protections in the rule, defend its science, and strengthen the rule’s requirements (Case: 24-60193 and Consolidated Case:  24-60281). At the same time, the industry petitioned to challenge the legal basis for the final rule and set it aside. 

“Decades of broken promises and unnecessary suffering demand action, not more delays from our government. said Linda Reinstein, ADAO President and co-founder.  “The court must reject this unwarranted delay, which is a disturbing sign that the Trump administration may be preparing to weaken the hard-fought progress we’ve made to protect Americans from asbestos. 40,000 Americans die every year because of asbestos-caused disease. EPA needs to strengthen its rule to cover all asbestos fibers and uses, not just chrysotile, rather than delay and deny the dangers of this deadly chemical. Because the rule does not go far enough to prevent harmful asbestos exposure, we have called on Congress to act decisively and pass comprehensive legislation to end the public health crisis caused by asbestos once and for all.” 

“The EPA’s request to hold this case in abeyance undermines the urgency of enforcing the Part 1 rule and postpones a judicial decision that may result in much-needed improvements in protection, which was one of ADAO’s key objectives in seeking judicial review of the rule,” said Bob Sussman, former EPA senior official and ADAO Legal Counsel. “Further weakening by the Trump EPA of a rule that is not now fully protective of public health would be a big step backward and a blow to public health. A definitive ruling from the court will provide crucial legal clarity on the EPA’s obligations under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and hopefully ensure that industry challenges do not derail asbestos protections already in effect and being implemented.”

ADAO’s brief urges the Court to move forward with the current briefing schedule and set an oral argument date that allows the new Administration time to review the rule while ensuring that the legal process is not unnecessarily delayed. The stakes are too high to allow further inaction on asbestos—a known and deadly carcinogen—while Americans continue to suffer.

###