When Was Asbestos Banned and Is It Still in Use?

Asbestos is not banned worldwide. Restrictions on its use vary from country to country. However, 55 countries have banned asbestos, and other countries have partial bans on certain uses of asbestos. The European Union’s asbestos ban for the use and marketing of all products containing asbestos went into effect in 2005, and it also prohibited all activities that exposed workers to asbestos fibers as of 2006. Australia banned all asbestos imports and current production, but not asbestos products already in use. Japan fully banned asbestos in 2004.

U.S. ban of asbestos

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) banned U.S. manufacturing, importing, processing, and commercial distribution of numerous asbestos-containing materials (ACM) in 1989. The EPA’s ban, which was authorized under section 6 of the Toxic Substances Control Act, was designed to phase out asbestos at staged intervals that include manufacturing, importing, processing, and commercial distribution for nearly all asbestos products. However, after asbestos companies sued the EPA, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals reviewed the EPA phase-out rule, vacating and remanding much of it in 1991. The rule was clarified because many asbestos-containing products covered by the EPA’s ban were no longer being imported, manufactured, or processed in 1989.

This clarification banned the following materials under the Clean Air Act:

• Spray-applied surfacing ACMs used for fireproofing, insulating, and decorative purposes
• Materials containing more than one percent asbestos sprayed on buildings, structures, pipes, and conduits—unless the material is encapsulated with a bituminous or resinous binder during spraying and the materials are not friable (easily crumbled) after drying
• Wet-applied and pre-formed asbestos pipe insulation
• Pre-formed asbestos block insulation on boilers and hot water tanks

The clarification banned the following asbestos uses under the Toxic Substances Control Act:

• Corrugated paper
• Rollboard
• Commercial paper
• Specialty paper
• Flooring felt
• New uses of asbestos

Products that were no longer banned under the clarification included:

Canadian export of asbestos remains strong. In 2000, Canada challenged the World Trade Organization’s categorization of asbestos as a hazardous material.