News Archive

An article uploaded on January 19, 2026 included conflicting statements about new plans by the Vietnam Government to deal with the asbestos hazard. Whilst acknowledging the human and environmental hazards posed by asbestos processing and consumption, the author of the text about a new draft decree seemed to indicate that new technology might be mandated to allow the production of asbestos-cement products to continue. Enquiries are being made to clarify the precise nature of the proposed legislation. See: Bộ Xây dựng đề xuất cấm đầu tư mới, mở rộng sản xuất tấm lợp fibro xi măng [The Ministry of Construction proposes to prohibit new investment, and expand the production of [non-asbestos] fiber cement roofing sheets.

Deadly Asbestos Legacy

Jan 21, 2026

Few places in the UK have been hit harder by asbestos-related deaths than Scotland. The article, by a legal asbestos specialist, cited below reported that “over 400 cases were litigated in Scotland in 2025 and the field continues to generate complex legal disputes. Asbestos litigation remains a significant and sensitive area of personal injury law in Scotland.” The elevated incidence of these diseases north of the border stem from decades of asbestos use in Scottish industries such as shipbuilding, manufacturing, and construction. A new Asbestos Damages Bill will be considered by the Scottish Parliament this year. See: Shadow of asbestos still falls on families today.

Asbestos & the CGIL

Jan 21, 2026

In the feature cited below, Nicola Pondrano, a life-long trade union activist and former Eternit worker, discussed his feelings in the aftermath of a shocking TV exposé broadcast in Italy on January 4, 2026. He reported the extensive surveillance carried out by an industrial spy on the campaigners for asbestos justice, the elevated incidence of asbestos mortality as a result of corporate negligence and the use of legal and extra-legal measures to forestall criminal convictions. See: Eternit, Report: ancora alla ricerca di giustizia, nonostante tutto- Tre domande a: Nicola Pondrano [Eternit Report: Still Seeking Justice, Despite Everything – Three Questions for Nicola Pondrano].

Asbestos in Schools

Jan 21, 2026

As children at schools in Gauteng, South Africa returned to their studies at the start of the Winter 2026 school term, the education of others remained in doubt due to a lack of capacity. Administrative difficulties amongst sundry provincial departments were, said Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi, preventing much-needed remediation work being carried out on some of the educational infrastructure, such as the old school in Sedebeng East in Emfuleni municipality, which remained closed because of asbestos contamination. See: Abandoned school building raises questions as Gauteng battles classroom shortages.

Asbestos and the Air Force

Jan 21, 2026

Italy’s Ministry of Defense was ordered to pay compensation to Air Force Marshal Nicola Panei by the Lazio Regional Administrative Court. According to the Court’s ruling, the conditions Panei was suffering from, including asbestosis, chronic-obstructive pulmonary disease and a reactive anxiety-depressive syndrome, were all related to the asbestos exposures he received during his 27 years of military service. See: Amianto e salute dei militari: il TAR Lazio condanna la Difesa, risarcimento al maresciallo di Fara Sabina, Nicola Panei [Asbestos and health of the military: the Lazio Regional Administrative Court condemns the Defense, compensation to Fara Sabina marshal, Nicola Panei].

Asbestos Eradication Program

Jan 21, 2026

Municipal funding of 1.018 billion won (US$693,000) has been allocated for a 2026 project to remove asbestos roofing on 210 buildings in Anseong City, South Korea. Applications will be accepted from February 2 to March 10, 2026 with priority given to applications from pensioners and vulnerable people. Commenting on this initiative, an Anseong City official said: “We urge citizens to actively apply to prevent health risks from asbestos-containing slate.”See: 노후 석면 슬레이트 지붕 철거 지원신청 접수 [Acceptance of applications for support for demolition of old asbestos slate roofs].

New Asbestos Ban Soon?

Jan 19, 2026

On Thursday January 15, 2026, Malaysia’s Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Datuk Seri Arthur Joseph Kurup in the ministry’s New Year message told reporters that the government acknowledged increasing public support for a national asbestos ban. “We are aware of it… We will come up with more information about it perhaps in the next few months.” According to a ministerial statement from 2025, the Department of Environment was conducting a study about the use of asbestos and the health and environmental impacts it had on the country and its citizens. See: Govt reviewing use of asbestos-based materials — minister.

BC’s Asbestos Ghost Town

Jan 19, 2026

The well-researched piece cited below described the “disappearance” of a former Canadian asbestos mining town: Cassiar. During the 20th century, 50,000 people were toxically exposed to the fiber which had been the town’s raison d'être for 40 years. Once the mine was closed in 1992 and the town was dismantled, former workers and residents dispersed. According to journalist Amanda Follett Hosgood, the collection of information on the number of people who contracted asbestos-related diseases from exposures in Cassiar, British Columbia is severely hampered by their forced exile from their home town. See: A Mining Town Scattered Residents, and Asbestos, to the Wind.

Progress Update!

Jan 19, 2026

According to Emanuele Capra, the Mayor of the town at the center of Italy’s asbestos epidemic: “The city of Casale Monferrato is today one of the safest and most monitored places in the world for asbestos safety.” The reason the Mayor gave for this assertion was the remediation work undertaken over the last 40 years which removed 1.89 million square meters of asbestos-containing material from the municipal infrastructure and sent 51,200 tons of toxic debris to landfills. See: Casale Monferrato quarant’anni dopo l’Eternit: rimossi quasi due milioni di metri quadrati di amianto [Casale Monferrato, forty years after the Eternit disaster: nearly two million square meters of asbestos removed].

Disaster Aftermath: Asbestos Update

Jan 19, 2026

On the first-year anniversary of the wildfires which decimated communities in Southern California, it was reported that some of the houses which had survived in Altadena and Pacific Palisades and been “cleaned” still registered levels of asbestos and lead “that exceed EPA safety levels.” By September 2025, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had cleared 2.6 million tons of ash, debris and contaminated soil from the area, much of which contained toxic material like asbestos and lead paint. See: It’s Been One Year Since Wildfires Devastated Los Angeles. What Have We Learned?

Asbestos in Schools

Jan 19, 2026

An investigation by Enquêtes d'actu [News Investigations] – a primetime French TV magazine program – on the scandal of asbestos contamination of schools which was broadcast this month reported that: more than half of all schools did not have updated mandatory asbestos audits; there was a worrying lack of transparency regarding remediation work commissioned by municipalities; and medical follow-up for at-risk teachers, staff and students was inadequate. See: Amiante dans les écoles : l'Éducation nationale et les maires défaillants ? Le résumé de notre enquête [Asbestos in schools: National Education and the failing mayors? Summary of our investigation].

School Remediation Funding

Jan 19, 2026

After the furore caused by news last year that asbestos-contaminated educational products – various types of coloured sand – had been used in schools throughout New Zealand, the government announced in January 2026 that funding would be available to help state and state-integrated schools “who have incurred or will be incurring asbestos removal, decontamination or building-related remediation costs due to asbestos in coloured sand” decontaminate affected premises. Applications for the one-off grant from the Ministry of Education can be made online using Application Form for Financial Support - Asbestos in Coloured Sand.
See: One-off grant for state and state-integrated schools affected by asbestos in coloured sand.

Paying the Price for Asbestos Profits

Jan 15, 2026

The humanitarian catastrophe and environmental destruction caused by the operations – from 1953 to 1992 – of the asbestos mine in Cassair, northern British Columbia was the focus of the informative and highly recommended article which is cited below. No information was provided by the mine owners or managers about the hazard posed by human exposures to asbestos. According to ex-employee Floyd Joseph: “People didn’t realize how dangerous it was…It wasn’t known until after [the mine] shut down. Then everybody found out how bad it was.” See: The Town That Asbestos Built. The Cancer It Left Behind.

National Asbestos Legacy

Jan 15, 2026

The widespread use of asbestos-containing material in Japan has left an invisible but fatal legacy in hundreds of thousands of private and public buildings. The comprehensive national ban enacted more than a decade ago does not mandate the removal of asbestos material from the built environment. As a result, workers like Yoshimasa Negishi, from Tokyo, continue to pay the price for government complacency. Negishi, a self-employed installer of air conditioning systems, was diagnosed with mesothelioma in August 2023 after years of toxic workplace exposures. See: Despite complete ban, asbestos still causing health problems.

MoD Guilty, Again!

Jan 15, 2026

The reason that Paola Maria Santospirito, the wife of Italian naval officer Lieutenant Leonardantonio Mastrovito, contracted asbestosis and other pathologies, concluded the Civil Court of Rome, was her exposure to asbestos-contaminated work clothes brought home by her husband. The Ministry of Defense (MoD) had been negligent for failing to prevent the toxic exposure and was ordered to pay Mrs. Santospirito compensation of €65,000 (US$76,000). See: Amianto portato a casa con le divise militari, Tribunale condanna il ministero della Difesa [Asbestos brought home on military uniforms, court rules against the Ministry of Defense].

Asbestos in Schools

Jan15, 2026

Another excellent asbestos article by the Daily Mail was uploaded on January 11, 2026. The focus of the text was the consequences of toxic childhood exposures to asbestos in contaminated schools. Sixty-six year old Rose Hall contracted mesothelioma after exposures in the 1970s to asbestos at the Allerton Grange school, in Leeds, England. It is believed that there are tens of thousands of other schools which are still affected. See: Grandmother gets incurable cancer after inhaling toxic asbestos during school musical rehearsals 55 years ago.

After the Deluge!

Jan 15, 2026

Montana State officials warned people in the former vermiculite mining town of Libby to be aware of potential environmental fallout from massive flooding that occurred in December 2025. Mine materials, including toxic substances such as asbestos, could been released onto private property, roads or river banks. According to official sources, on-site inspections will not begin until the Spring. Until then residents were advised “to avoid flood debris, abide by local road closures and contact the Lincoln County Asbestos Resource Program with any concerns regarding suspect materials on private property.” See: Officials monitor potential mine waste exposure following Libby-area floods.

New Cancer Screening Program

Jan 15, 2026

Staff in the Italian Province of Alessandria have implemented a free screening program for people between 55 and 80 who are at high risk of contracting lung cancer because of previous asbestos exposures as well as a history of smoking. It is hoped that obtaining an early diagnosis of the cancer via the use of low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) will enable patients to access early treatment which is pivotal for securing the best health outcome. In December, the first 88 LDCT tests were carried out at the Radiology Department of the Casale Monferrato Hospital. See: Studio tumori al polmone: nell’Alessandrino una ricerca in aiuto dei fumatori e dei cittadini esposti all’amianto [Lung cancer study: research in the Alessandria area to help smokers and citizens exposed to asbestos].

Improving EU Asbestos Protections

Jan 12, 2026

In December 2025, it was announced that the European Commission had adopted measures to improve occupational asbestos protections, which included new guidelines for Member States to help them lower workers' exposures to asbestos as well as the expansion of the list of occupational asbestos-related diseases eligible for compensation. The new diseases added to the list are: “cancer of the larynx, cancer of the ovary, pleural plaques with lung impairment, and non-malignant pleural effusion.” See: Stronger protection for workers with new asbestos guidelines and updated list of occupational diseases.

Asbestos at the White House?

Jan 12, 2026

Frustrated by the lack of information about last October’s tear-down of the East Wing of the White House, on January 7, 2026 civil society campaigners sued the Trump administration, to ascertain whether guidelines had been followed to protect workers and members of the public from deadly asbestos exposures. The lawsuit is seeking pertinent documents regarding asbestos inspections, air monitoring, waste disposal safeguards and the other protections implemented during the demolition. Commenting on the Government’s lack of transparency in this matter, Senator Edward Markey said: “This Administration is deceptive to the point of being dangerous to the American people.” See: Advocates sue Trump officials for answers on East Wing asbestos risks.

Scathing Reaction to TV Exposé

Jan 12, 2026

Mesothelioma widow and journalist Silvana Mossano reacted to disclosures in a January 4, 2026 TV program about emails released as part of the Jeffrey Epstein files by uploading an open letter to Stephan Schmidheiny, the Swiss billionaire convicted by courts in Italy for asbestos deaths of workers and members of the public. For years Mossano had urged Schmidheiny to make restitution by funding medical research. The wealth of emotions stirred by the revelations spurred her to quote the words of beloved leader Romana Blasotti Pavesi: “We are more than you.” See: REPORT e AMIANTO – Signor Schmidheiny: sono stupida stupida stupida. E adesso anche arrabbiata [REPORT and ASBESTOS – Mr. Schmidheiny: I’m stupid, stupid, stupid. And now I’m angry too].

Asbestos in Schools

Jan 12, 2026

As children returned to schools in the French Department of Eure-et-Loir after the Christmas holidays, trade unionists raised the alarm over the hazard posed by the presence of asbestos-containing material in two schools in the commune of Senonches. Unsealed and broken asbestos floor tiles were discovered during inspections in November 2025. Concerned parents, teachers and children mounted a public protest over the contamination in front of the school’s gates on January 5, 2026. See: «À chaque fois que les élèves vont au tableau, ils peuvent souffler dessus»: l’amiante, danger invisible des établissements scolaires en Eure-et-Loir [“Every time students go to the blackboard, they can blow on it”: asbestos, an invisible danger in schools in Eure-et-Loir].

Asbestos at Military Base

Jan 12, 2026

Even though asbestos use was formally banned in Isarel by the Asbestos and Hazardous Dust Prevention Law (2011), asbestos-containing material remains in place throughout the national infrastructure, including at military installations. One such contaminated location is a base belonging to Israel’s Defense Force in Haifa which is near to residential areas in the city center. Throughout the country, there are 78 million square meters of asbestos-cement (AC) roofs, fences, pipes and warehouses. The Government claims that asbestos fibers in AC products are tightly bound within a matrix and “only pose a danger when they are crushed or burned.” This is not true. See: Asbestos roofs still at IDF base in Haifa.

Asbestos Protections at Schools

Jan 12, 2026

To ensure that safety protocols were followed by specialists engaged in asbestos removal work at nine elementary, middle, and high schools in Uijeongbu City in South Korea’s Gyeonggi Province, Mayor Kim Donggeun announced plans to conduct on-site inspections during the winter school vacation. Commenting on the municipal asbestos eradication program, Lee Jong-beom, head of the Environmental Policy Division, said: “Asbestos is a first-class carcinogen and can threaten students’ health, so it is important to thoroughly manage the asbestos removal work in schools.” See: 의정부시, 겨울방학 기간 학교 석면 해체 현장 집중 점검 실시 [Uijeongbu City conducts intensive inspection of school asbestos dismantling sites during winter vacation].

Partial Victory in Jakarta!

Jan 8, 2026

The article cited below explored the ramifications of a recent ruling by the Jakarta High Court, which rejected huge financial claims sought by asbestos industry vested interests against civil society campaigners who had successfully petitioned the Supreme Court to take decisive action on the asbestos hazard. Welcoming aspects of the decision, the accused, however, highlighted the court’s misunderstanding regarding the serious danger posed by human exposures to chrysotile (white) asbestos and the purview of the Rotterdam Convention on the prior informed consent procedure for certain hazardous chemicals and pesticides in international trade. See: Key Win over the Asbestos Industry in Indonesia.