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Facts about abestos

What is abestos?

Asbestos is the name for a group of naturally occurring silicate minerals that can be separated into fibers. The fibers are strong, durable, and resistant to heat and fire. They are also long, thin and flexible, so that they can even be woven into cloth. Because of these qualities, asbestos has been used in thousands of consumer, industrial, maritime, automotive, scientific and building products. During the twentieth century, some 30 million tons of asbestos were used in industrial sites, homes, schools, shipyards and commercial buildings in the United States. There are several types of asbestos fibers, of which three have been used for commercial applications: (1) Chrysotile, or white asbestos, comes mainly from Canada, and has been very widely used in the US. It is white-gray in color and found in serpentine rock. (2) Amosite, or brown asbestos, comes from southern Africa. (3) Crocidolite, or blue asbestos, comes from southern Africa and Australia.

What are asbestos-containing products?

What is common to many asbestos-containing products is that they were (are) used to contain heat (i.e. thermal insulation.) It is impossible to list all of the products that have, at one time or another, contained asbestos. Some of the more common asbestos-containing products are pipe-covering, insulating cement, insulating block, asbestos cloth, gaskets, packing materials, thermal seals, refractory and boiler insulation materials, transite board, asbestos cement pipe, fireproofing spray, joint compound, vinyl floor tile, ceiling tile, mastics, adhesives, coatings, acoustical textures, duct insulation for heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, roofing products, insulated electrical wire and panels, and brake and clutch assemblies.
Some of these products contained a very high proportion of asbestos, while others contained small amounts. The following are some of the more common asbestos-containing products.

" Acoustical panels - Acoustical plaster - Acoustical tile - Adhesive - Asbestos board - Asbestos canvas - Asbestos cloth - Asbestos cord - Asbestos corrugated sheets - Asbestos curtains - Asbestos finishing cement - Asbestos flatboard - Asbestos gloves - Asbestos insulating blankets - Asbestos insulating cement - Asbestos mineral wool - Asbestos packing - Asbestos paper - Asbestos rollboard - Asbestos rope - Asbestos seals - Asbestos sheets - Asbestos sponge block - Asbestos sponge cover - Asbestos spray - Asbestos tape - Asbestos textile - Automobile hood liners - Blaze shield - Boilers - Bonding cement - Cables - Calcium silicate insulation - Carded asbestos cloth - Ceiling tiles - Cement - Ceramic tile - Cigarette filters - Clay - Cloth - Emulsion adhesive - Fake snow - Fire resistant insulation shield - Fireproofing cement - Hair dryers - High pressure packing - Insulation seal - Paint - Paper etc.

Who are at risk of abestos exposure?

Exposure to asbestos fibers can cause asbestos-related diseases including mesothelioma cancer and others. Many people have come into contact with asbestos fibers via their jobs, or occupational exposure. There is also a risk to the family members of those working in at-risk occupations; this exposure is called paraoccupational exposure. By one estimate, nearly 80% of the cases of mesothelioma are believed to be the direct result of occupational or paraoccupational exposure to primary asbestos fibers. A third group of people are also at risk but it is not a risk the derives from their job but from where they live. Those who live near sites likely to have asbestos around the facility - refineries, power plants, factories, shipyards, steel mills and building demolition - can be exposed via the release of asbestos fibers that contaminate their residential neighborhoods.

Asbestos-Exposure Risk includes:

Industries / Job Locations:

- Asbestos product manufacturing (insulation, roofing, building, materials)
- Automotive repair (brakes & clutches)
- Construction/contractors
- Maritime
- Oil refineries
- Power plants
- Railroads
- Shipyards / ships
- Steel mills

Occupations:

- Automotive mechanics
- Boiler makers
- Bricklayers
- Building Inspectors
- Carpenters
- Electricians
- Hod carriers
- Insulators
- Iron workers
- Laborers
- Longshoremen
- Maintenance workers
- Merchant marines
- Millwrights
- Painters
- Plasterers
- Plumbers
- Roofers
- Sheet metal workers
- Steam fitters
- Tile setters