Working with Asbestos

Johns-Manville Corporation made this film, probably in the late 1970s, with J-M Services. It is about working safely with asbestos products and presents the industry's industrial-hygiene program. The narrator and a medical consultant and Dr. Paul Kotin, named on screen, discuss asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma, how the lungs defend against dust, the 1972 OSHA standard, dust monitoring, respirators, medical exams, labels and dust-control equipment. The film ends with firefighters in a closing fire scene.

What it says about asbestos and health

It names asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma as asbestos-related diseases and says asbestos "need not pose a health risk if it is handled with caution"; it adds that lung cancer risk is found "with very few exceptions" in smokers.

About this copy

Our copy is a transfer of a print from Johns-Manville's own film archive (box 04-03395), shown in full, 21:35 long. Produced by J-M Services. Made by Johns-Manville on working with asbestos products and its industrial-hygiene program.

Transcript

A machine transcript of the soundtrack, not yet checked against the film; names and technical words may be wrong.

Every day, many of us put something into the atmosphere that shouldn't be there. Fortunately, most of these substances are harmless in the small quantities released. But even heavy doses of ordinary household products could cause health problems if misused. We know that cigarette smoking can be hazardous to a person's health. And there is strong evidence that if you combine the inhalation of cigarette smoke with inhalation of certain other substances, you greatly increase the risk of lung disease. Asbestos, like thousands of other materials used every day by industry, may be released into the air we breathe and might pose health problems under certain conditions.

But just as we need wood, asbestos also is needed for the many valuable and life-saving contributions it makes to our way of life. While some people may believe that the health risks outweigh the many benefits, the asbestos industry is confident of its ability to work safely with a potentially hazardous material. That's what this film is about. Let's be frank, the U.S. government lists more than 60,000 toxic or harmful substances in use today and estimates we could be exposed to more than a hundred thousand potentially harmful materials in our modern world. Some of these exist naturally in our environment but many more are produced by man. Asbestos is one of those natural potentially harmful materials under certain conditions exposure to asbestos can cause serious health problems but asbestos need not pose a health risk if it is handled with caution and treated as one would treat any of the thousands of other potentially harmful materials it need not present any threat to health still asbestos can pose a health hazard in occupational environments when precautions are not taken to control exposures About 1907, a London physician reported the first case of what he called a diffuse pulmonary fibrosis among a group of factory workers who had a substantial and prolonged exposure to asbestos.

Around 1930, other researchers demonstrated that this disease, called asbestosis, posed a significant health threat to factory workers in the asbestos textile industry. By then, asbestos companies already had begun to support research into the health effects of asbestos fiber and had intensified efforts to control exposures. The asbestos industry continues to spend millions of dollars to define the hazards and ways to control them. We know that asbestosis is a non-cancerous lung condition that can be caused by excessive and prolonged inhalation of asbestos fiber. It is one of a number of respiratory diseases called a pneumoconiosis, each caused by inhaling irritant particles. A person with asbestosis may experience unusual breathlessness after periods of physical exertion.

Deterioration of lung capacity and function can be measured by pulmonary function tests. Also the physician may be able to detect crackling chest noises with a stethoscope. scope. Asbestosis is a generalized thickening of the delicate lung tissue, preventing the lungs from efficiently providing oxygen to the body. This disease can be detected through the regular medical exams provided by asbestos companies. Since modern environmental controls have greatly reduced the amount of asbestos that workers might be exposed to, it is very likely that asbestosis will cease to be a significant health problem in the future. It also has been found that inhalation of asbestos fibers may result in an increased risk of developing bronchogenic or lung cancer.

With very few exceptions, this increased risk has been found only in persons who smoke cigarettes. Asbestos exposed persons who do not smoke have no greater chance of getting this disease than any other person who does not smoke. The third disease sometimes associated with asbestos inhalation is a very rare cancer called mesothelioma. It affects the lining of the chest cavity called the pleura or the abdominal cavity called the peritoneum. Little is known about the biological factors involved in this disease but research indicates that asbestos exposure is not the exclusive cause mesothelioma has been found in persons who have no history of exposure to asbestos fiber it should be noted that all of these asbestos associated diseases have long latent periods which is that period of time between exposure and development of the disease up to 40 years in some cases medical scientists also are investigating the possibility that exposure to asbestos might result in an increased risk of developing gastrointestinal cancer, a disease of the digestive tract, although there is no conclusive evidence of any risk at this time. Now all this talk about disease is not meant to frighten you but to inform.

People who might be exposed to asbestos should know what risks they face if they or their employer fail to follow safe work procedures. This is no different than a person's right to know about any other material that could cause accidental harm whether at work or at home it is important to remember that while asbestos may get into the air we breathe this does not necessarily mean it will get into our lungs or that if it does that it will make us ill to see why this is true let's take a look at the human respiratory system and how it works first the human body has a remarkable built-in defensive system for coping with inhaled dust and other foreign material including asbestos fiber all the air we breathe must first pass our little nose hairs which pre filter the larger particles so that only particles of a certain size can enter the respiratory tract our respiratory tract is lined with a sticky mucus carpet which moves on top of hair-like cells called cilia. This escalator system traps and then sweeps upward unwanted particles and fibers back up to the nasal passageways where they can be removed or swallowed and eventually eliminated from the body by that route. This mucociliary escalator system continues all the way from the nasal passageways down the trachea or windpipe into the two main passages to our lungs and on into smaller and smaller tree-like branches. At the end of these passageways are tiny structures called alveoli where oxygen and carbon dioxide are exchanged. Particles that manage to escape the cilial defense system are then subject to attack by special types of cells which envelop and render virtually harmless most invading particles.

One One point that cannot be overemphasized is that smoking greatly increases the risk of developing lung cancer in persons who are exposed to asbestos fiber. One of the reasons for this is that smoking damages the mucus carpet so it can no longer trap invading particles. Also smoke deposits cause changes in lung tissue which can render other defensive systems ineffective. effective. So if you are potentially exposed to asbestos and don't smoke, don't start. If you do smoke, make a sincere effort to stop for your own sake and that of your family. One of the medical scientists who has spent a great part of his life studying the health effects of asbestos is Dr.

George Wright, an independent medical consultant who directs the scientific committee of the Institute for Occupational and Environmental Health, Dr. Wright. We should remember that the health problems we are seeing today are not the result of present working conditions, but of conditions that existed decades ago before any of us were fully aware of the seriousness of the problem. The reason for the lag in our knowledge is that all the diseases in question have long, latent periods. They don't develop overnight, and in some cases, not even after 30 years. I can't say with certainty that at some time in the future, we will never again see another case of asbestos-related disease.

But certainly we won't be experiencing the problems we must face today, day which developed as the result of our past ignorance. Another recognized authority in the field of respiratory disease and asbestos is Dr. Paul Kotin, now Senior Vice President for Health, Safety, and Environment of the Johns-Manville Corporation. Dr. Kotin. As we have learned more about the hazards, we also have learned more about how to control them.

The industry has made significant progress in improving dust control systems and thereby reducing worker exposure. A number of studies of work populations has shown that a marked decrease in asbestos related disease will occur where efficient dust control systems have been installed and where proper work procedures are followed. Recent studies of persons who have worked under conditions of strict dust control indicate that the incidence of disease has been greatly reduced. The government also has acted to protect asbestos workers. In 1972 the US The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration, called OSHA, set permanent standards for occupational exposure to asbestos.

The standards require that airborne levels of asbestos in the workplace be limited to a certain number of fibers per cubic centimeter of air over the average eight-hour workday. These exposure limits are sometimes referred to as threshold limit values. They refer to airborne concentrations of substances and represent conditions under which it is believed nearly all workers may be repeatedly exposed day after day without adverse effect. The most acceptable way of reducing exposures is by providing effective ventilation wherever dust might be generated. Exhaust systems at dust sources and in work areas, enclosure of equipment, and the use Use of water sprays to suppress dust are common methods used by industry to protect its workers. Many of these systems are unique to the asbestos industry.

The government also requires that certain other things be done for companies to remain in compliance with the standards. These include monitoring, protective equipment, medical surveillance, signs and labels, and and special protection. To make sure exposure limits are not exceeded, asbestos companies conduct regular monitoring programs wherever there is a potential for exposure above permissible limits. During these surveys by industrial hygienists, the content of the air will be measured to make certain employees are not being exposed to airborne levels exceeding permitted limits. Monitoring is done on both the personal and area sampling basis. Workers may be asked to wear a small portable pump while working.

This pump draws in air from the breathing zone and passes it through a filter. Later the industrial hygienist will take a small piece of the filter, examine it under a microscope, and count all the fibers of a certain size. Through a series of calculations he then can determine how much asbestos was in the air. Sometimes area samples are taken using the same equipment except that the The monitor stays in one place. If asbestos levels are found to be above permissible limits, immediate action is taken to correct the situation. While engineering solutions are being implemented, employees may be required to wear respirators.

Respirators filter harmful dusts and fumes from the air we breathe. They may be required in some cleaning and maintenance operations or wherever there is the possibility of equipment failure that might release high levels of asbestos fiber medical surveillance is an important part of the OSHA compliance program free medical examinations are given all workers exposed to asbestos fiber the physicians report and discuss results of the medical exams with employees and when requested can make exam records available to the employees own physician asbestos companies also post special caution signs where there is a potential for exposure above permitted limits. Caution labels also are placed on materials that might, during handling or use, produce dust levels that exceed exposure limits. Finally, wherever asbestos exposure limits might be exceeded, protective clothing is provided along with facilities to change clothes. It is important that workers take to prevent taking any asbestos fiber home on clothing, shoes, or other items to avoid exposing others to airborne dust. The industry's concern extends outside its plants.

Although there is no firm evidence of any health hazard to the general public from asbestos, protective measures have been taken by both industry and government to be on the safe side. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requires that asbestos- using operations produce no visible emissions when there is a potential of asbestos containing visible emissions a fabric bag filter or other approved form of emission control must be used this is the largest fabric bag filter system in the world located at an asbestos mill in Canada it contains more than 80,000 filter bags connected by about four miles of piping although the The principle involved is similar to that of a household vacuum cleaner. These and other systems on a smaller scale are engineering feats that have greatly reduced dust levels inside and outside of asbestos-using operations. Over the years, the asbestos industry has spent millions of dollars developing new dust control systems and equipment, systems to reduce grinding dust and to draw away dust-laden in air from other milling and manufacturing operations. Today, asbestos companies are working in other areas as well to help reduce or eliminate exposures, such as new concepts in packaging.

Often, different kinds of bags are available, some of which can be dumped unopened into certain types of manufacturing operations. The use of railroad cars with double wide doors to ease loading and unloading is another development. Asbestos bags are loaded on sturdy pallets, glue- locked together, and then held securely in place by inflatable dunnage to keep bags from shifting and breaking during transport. Product development also has resulted in virtually dust-free material, such as compressed fiber blocks and pellets. The pellets are gaining popularity with many asbestos users. The asbestos industry also has developed employee and customer health education programs, making use of written material, posters, films, and other visual aids.

Those who work with asbestos should follow one simple rule, avoid creating dust. If dust is created, take immediate action to clean it up. If a bag is broken, reseal it or put it into a closed container. If any fiber is spilled or if dust is accidentally generated, it should be cleaned up quickly with a vacuum system or by wetting the material first before sweeping. Never sweep dry asbestos since you will create airborne dust. In all stages of handling where dust could be created, such as bag opening, follow safe work practices and use dust control equipment properly.

When a product must be cut, shaped, or fitted, take care to avoid generating dust and inhaling it. If you are required to use a respirator, use it properly and make sure it fits snugly. If you are not sure how to handle material or perform an operation without exposing yourself to airborne fiber, check with someone who does know. Remember, asbestos can be safely handled and used when proper precautions are taken keep in mind too that the vast majority of finished asbestos products pose little or no threat to health because the fibers have been locked in by means of cement as in asbestos cement pipe plastic or other binders therefore the fibers are not easily released into the air during normal handling and use asbestos will not in danger of person's health as long as proper work procedures are followed and dust control equipment is used properly and once you know them these simple procedures are as easy to follow as good safe driving practices