On June 26, Ukraine banned all kinds of asbestos including white chrysotile
asbestos
In a letter dated
June 25, 2017 addressed to Union Minister, Ministry of Environment, Forest and
Climate Change and Ministry of Science & Technology and Earth Sciences,
ToxicsWatch has
sought stoppage of grant of environmental clearances to asbestos
based factories and projects to save Indians from killer mineral fibers of
white chrysotile asbestos. In a related development, at a press briefing on June 26,
201 held in Kyiv (Kiev), Ukraine’s Ministry of Health has prohibited the
use of asbestos and products containing asbestos. This was announced. The
briefing was entitled: “Health without compromises. With this Ukraine has
formally banned asbestos. This briefing was co-organized by Ukraine’s Ministry
of Health.” The Ministry confirmed that the asbestos prohibition adopted
by the Ministry of Health on 29 March, 2017 and approved in June 2017 by
relevant ministries and government department has come into force. These new
regulations ban the use of all types of asbestos including white chrysotile asbestos.
This implies that it will not be purchasing asbestos from Russian and
Kazakhstan asbestos mining companies anymore.
The English version video of
the Press-briefing is available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E95WzLupHeY
Notably, the following countries have
taken cognizance of the hazardous nature of all kinds of asbestos including
white chrysotile asbestos: 1) Algeria,
2) Argentina, 3) Australia, 4) Austria, 5) Bahrain, 6) Belgium, 7) Brunei, 8)
Bulgaria, 9) Chile, 10) Croatia, 11)
Cyprus, 12) Czech Republic, 13) Denmark, 14) Egypt, 15) Estonia, 16) Finland,
17) France, 18) Gabon, 19) Greece, 20)
Germany, 21) Gibraltar, 22) Hungary, 23) Honduras, 24) Iceland, 25) Iraq, 26)
Ireland, 27) Israel, 28) Italy, 29) Japan, 30) Jordan, 31) Kuwait, 32) Latvia,
33) Luxembourg, 34) Lithuania, 35) Mauritius, 36) Mozambique, 37) Malta, 38)
Netherlands, 39) New Caledonia, 40) New Zealand, 41) Norway, 42) Oman, 43)
Portugal, 44) Poland, 45) Qatar, 46) Romania, 47) Saudi Arabia, 48)
Sweden, 49) Switzerland, 50) Serbia, 51)
Seychelles, 52) Slovakia, 53) Slovenia, 54) South Africa, 55) South Korea, 56)
Spain, 57) Turkey, 58) Uruguay and 59) United Kingdom. India can learn from these
countries which have banned asbestos.
The
letter sent by ToxicsWatch
to
Dr Harshvardhan provides 14 suggestions for making his ministries purposeful and effective.
In keeping with the Vision Statement
on Environment and Human Health” of the environment ministry,
it has sought his intervention to make India free of asbestos. The Vision Statement
states “4.3.1 Environmental epidemiological studies are required
to be carried out near to industrial estates and hazardous waste disposal sites
to estimate the extent of health risks including from asbestos. Alternatives to
asbestos may be used to the extent possible and use of asbestos may be phased
out.” The letter is attached.
The letter drew
minister’s attention towards the order of Kerala Human Rights Commission dated January
31, 2009 which has the following recommendations:
a) The State Government will replace asbestos roofs of all school buildings
under its control with country tiles in a phased manner. b) The Government will
take steps to see that the schools run under the private management also
replace the asbestos roofs with country tiles by fixing a time frame. c) The
Government should see that in future no new school is allowed to commence its
functions with asbestos roofs. I seek your intervention to ensure
strict compliance with this order and to get a Register of asbestos laden
buildings prepared so that a road map can be prepared for their decontamination.
The state ought to prepare a Register of those workers who handle asbestos
and the victims of primary and secondary exposure from asbestos
fibers.
It drew his attention towards the Concept Paper dated
September 2011 of Union Ministry of Labour, Government of India presented at
the EU-India Seminar that reveals that the Central Government is planning to
eliminate asbestos from the country due to health reasons. The paper is
available on Ministry's website.
It drew the
attention of the minister towards Supreme Court's order dated January 27, 1995
and World Health Organisation (WHO)'s outline for the Development of
National Programmes for elimination of asbestos related diseases' make a case
for stopping all asbestos based products to prevent the imminent public health
crisis as a consequence of which more than 55 countries have banned all forms
of asbestos.
It may be
recalled that late Shri
Anil Madhav Dave as Union Minister of Environment, Forest & Climate Change had
said
on 15 August 2016 that “Since the use of asbestos is
affecting human health, its use should gradually be minimised and eventually
end. As far as I know, its use is declining. But it must end…”
The letter reads,
“It will be great if you can pursue remedial measures for present and future
generations before children get engulfed in the epidemic of incurable but
preventable asbestos related diseases. This is of seminal importance to prevent
preventable diseases and deaths.”
For Details: Dr Gopal Krishna, ToxicsWatch Alliance (TWA), Mb:
9818089660, 08227816731, E-mail: 1715krishna@gmail.com, Web: www.toxicswatch.org
