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Another searing asbestos exposé has been uploaded by Confront Power, a British investigative news portal. The focus of this piece was the emerging asbestos scandal at Oxford University. The institution was ordered by the Information Commissioner’s Office to release relevant internal documents from 2019 and 2020. They showed dramatic failings in the management of asbestos contained within the university infrastructure: “Out of the estimated 235 university buildings with asbestos-containing materials, just four buildings had developed and implemented sufficient asbestos management plans.” See: Serious asbestos management failings at Oxford University, documents reveal.

A report on discussions which took place on June 19 & 20, 2025 on the industrial legacy of Libby, Montana and the vital work of the Center for Asbestos-Related Disease (CARD) wwas uploaded on September 29, 2025. Libby, Montana is an EPA superfund site due to extensive asbestos contamination caused by the vermiculite mining operations of the W. R. Grace company. Despite contested legal rulings and media misrepresentation, CARD remained open for business so that it could continue to support asbestos victims and their families. See: Proceedings of the Libby, Montana asbestos education & outreach retreat.

Domenico Rossi, a regional councilor from Italy’s Piedmont region, expressed the concern of many local people, when he sought confirmation from the Department of the Environment about the transfer of asbestos waste from a building site in Turin to the Savoini waste facility in Maggiora, a city in the Province of Novara, Piedmont. The official response from the Department was less than reassuring as it referred to “non-hazardous waste containing asbestos” and failed to say how long the materials would remain in the Novara area. See: Sono arrivati a Maggiora i rifiuti contenenti amianto del cantiere di Torino [Asbestos-containing waste from Turin construction site has arrived in Maggiora].

A new resource – The Asbestos Product Guide – by Australia’s Asbestos and Silica Safety and Eradication Agency (ASSEA) was recently uploaded. The guide provided pictures showing typical asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) used in Australia during the 20th century, with useful information including brand names and descriptions. Photos are grouped under subject headings including: building structures & Components, machinery & fixed plant, electrical infrastructure, insulation, adhesives, sealants & coatings and other. See: The Asbestos Product Guide.

An asbestos roundtable discussion took place at the annual Labor Party Conference which was held in Birmingham on September 29, 2025. A number of leading experts recapped the ongoing hazard posed by asbestos within the national infrastructure and bemoaned the failure of the Labour Government to take effective action. Minister Sir Stephen Timms detailed some positive developments: the 2025-26 rollout of an asbestos census of the public estate, beginning with schools and hospitals; HSE's plans for regulatory reform to tighten up the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012; HSE's increased awareness campaigns and proposed research on epidemiological studies, high-risk areas and stakeholders’ behaviour. See: Labour's Asbestos Strategy: Progress or Procrastination?

Last week, Canadian Superior Court Judge Florence Lucas gave the green light for an asbestos class action to be heard by the Court. The one hundred claimants are alleging to have been psychologically harmed as a result of experiencing exposures to asbestos. Many of the plaintiffs lived in buildings where asbestos-containing materials had been present. According to a lawyer representing the injured, this case could set a legal precedent by allowing compensation for asbestos anxiety. See: L’impact de l’amiante sur la santé mentale pourrait être reconnu par la cour [The impact of asbestos on mental health could be recognized by court].

It was reported last month that the Australian decommissioned offshore oil facility The Northern Endeavour was now on its way via Singapore to Denmark where it will be dismantled. On board the toxic vessel is a hazardous cocktail of asbestos, radioactive scale, contaminated sludge and heavy metals. The fact that it was being exported without a hazardous waste permit was flagged up by the Maritime Union of Australia which said that this exposed “foreign workers and communities in receiving countries to risks.” See: Australian oil facility sent to Denmark via Singapore for dismantling.

An unusual asbestos personal injury case is proceeding in an Illinois court brought by the surviving family of 84-year-old farmer Eugene Schoepke. In 2022, within weeks of being diagnosed with mesothelioma, the signature cancer associated with exposure to asbestos, Mr. Schoepke was dead. According to his lawyer, the cause of his death was his use of Remington asbestos-containing shotgun shells when he was hunting pheasants, doves, etc. or engaging in recreational shooting. The lawsuit was filed against Sporting Goods Properties Inc., formerly Remington Arms, and Remington’s one-time parent company DuPont, formerly E.I. DuPont de Nemours. See: A new kind of asbestos case gets its first day in court with nationwide implications.

An open letter to Bernard Drainville, Quebec’s new Minister of the Environment, the Fight Against Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks, highlighted the contamination by municipal, farming and asbestos mining waste of the Bécancour River. Asbestos fiber washed down from mountains of mining waste have, according to the letter “greatly disrupted the hydrological and sedimentological regime of Stater Pond and our Lac à la Truite (Trout Lake), which are clogged with asbestos-containing mine tailings…” See: Lette ouverte : « La rivière Bécancour, une tâche urgente » [Open Letter: “The Bécancour River, an urgent task”].

To mark International Mesothelioma Day, on September 26, 2025 the Hellenic Thoracic Society uploaded the text cited below which explained the causes of mesothelioma, available medical treatments, the ongoing hazard posed by asbestos-containing material within Greece’s built environment, the existing regulations and loopholes. Support for victims in Greece is minimal: “there is no complete registration (of victims), but it is estimated that about 40–60 new cases occur annually, mainly in people with occupational exposure.” This figure seemed woefully small considering that Greece was both an asbestos producer and user during the 20th century. See: Μεσοθηλίωμα: Οι κίνδυνοι του καρκίνου από τον αμίαντο δεν ανήκουν στο παρελθόν [Mesothelioma: The risks of cancer from asbestos are not a thing of the past].

An educational seminar – Asbestos Learning & Vigilance for Early Occupational Lung Intervention on Asbestos Dangers and Early Detection of Occupational Lung Diseases – for Indonesian medical students was held in Jatinangor, West Java Province on September 25, 2025. The purpose of this event was to increase medical literacy, highlight measures to prevent occupational lung disease and reduce the national incidence of non-communicable diseases. The use of asbestos, a Group 1 carcinogen, is still legal in Indonesia. See: Urgensi Edukasi Penghapusan Penyakit Akibat Asbes di Indonesia [The Urgency of Education to Eliminate Asbestos-Caused Diseases in Indonesia.

A ruling handed down on September 25, 2025 by Japan’s Public Investigation Commission awarded ¥27.5 million (US$184,000) to the family of a man who had died from mesothelioma after having been exposed to asbestos liberated by the operations at a factory belonging to the Nichias group in Hashima City, Gifu Prefecture. Nichias was one of Japan’s largest manufacturers of asbestos-containing building products. The deceased had worked at a textile facility 350 meters from the Nichias plant. See: ニチアス工場周辺のアスベスト被害に2750万円賠償命じる　公調委が責任裁定 [Ordering 27.5 million yen in compensation for asbestos damage around the Nichias plant The Public Investigation Commission is responsible for the ruling].

On September 26, 2025, an article was uploaded to the website of the Shandong Peninsula Metropolis Daily – “a Chinese-language newspaper published in Shandong province” – to mark International Mesothelioma Day. The article warned people working with asbestos or living near asbestos-producing and/or using facilities of the dire health effects of occupational and environmental exposures to asbestos. China is one of the world’s leading producers and users of asbestos. See: 国际胸膜间皮瘤日丨警惕这个“职业癌”，它比肺癌更凶险狡诈 [International Pleural Mesothelioma Day. Be wary of this “occupational cancer,” which is more dangerous and cunning than lung cancer].

A text on an Indonesian website detailed recent testimony in a lawsuit targeting ban asbestos activists. The witnesses for the accused were: Environmental lawyer Dr Joshua and medical specialist Dr Anna Surya. According to Dr Joshua, the lawsuit by FICMA, an asbestos trade association, was an example of “a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation [SLAPP], a tactic of legal intimidation commonly used to silence public criticism.” Dr Surya explained the nature of “The Asbestos Time Bomb” causing debilitating disease and premature deaths throughout the country. See: Ironi Gugatan Asbes: Industri Tuntut Ganti Rugi, Nyawa Publik Jadi Taruhan [The Irony of Asbestos Lawsuits: Industry Demands Compensation, While Public Lives Are at Stake, Local Initiative for OSH Network].

The removal of toxic sections of road in the Vaise district of the French city of Lyon was scheduled to begin last week and take until October 10 to complete. The logistics and implementation of the work was time-consuming and expensive as the road surface contained asbestos. According to asbestos removal specialist Cédric Terlon, a manager at the construction company Roger Martin, “We have asbestos in the asphalt at this intersection. Until 1995, it was potentially used in asphalt to improve its strength and abrasion resistance.” The removal of fifteen centimetres of asphalt requires “meticulous and ultra-safe organization,” Terlon said. See: Opération de désamiantage d'envergure à Vaise [Large-scale asbestos removal operation in Vaise].

The article cited below was uploaded by the Thoracic Oncology Working Group of the Turkish Thoracic Society on September 27, 2025 to mark International Mesothelioma Day. The authors warned that shortcuts being taken to maintain the frenetic pace of urban transformation projects in Turkey continue to put the population at risk of potentially lethal exposures to asbestos from buildings which had not been decontaminated prior to demolition work. See: Kentsel Dönüşüm Kanser Riskini Artırabilir [Urban Transformation May Increase Cancer Risk].

The article which can be accessed at the link provided was written by Julian Branch, an outspoken critic of Canada’s failure to deal with the deadly legacy posed by the continued use of deteriorating asbestos-containing pipes to deliver water. The head-in-the-sand approach adopted by the authorities and public utility companies to the threat posed by ingested asbestos in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Yukon and British Columbia seems to be validated by the lack of action taken by Health & Welfare Canada – now Health Canada (HC) – and the federal government. Branch detailed decades of missed opportunities and concluded with, considering the neglect shown to date, a possibly over-optimistic hope that a current reassessment of the situation by HC might bring improvements. [Read full article]

Recent developments in East and Southeast Asia have highlighted the continued importance of bilateral and multinational collaborations in the struggle to address national asbestos legacies. The exchange of information and the sharing of expertise remain essential tools in neutralizing the efforts of industry lobbyists who continue to actively promote the interests of asbestos stakeholders at national, regional and international forums. In the post-Covid era, there has been a resurgence of multinational collaborations as illustrated by developments in Phnom Penh, Cambodia; Seoul, Korea; and Jakarta, Indonesia which are discussed in this article. [Read full article]

In her review of “Bad Dust, A History of the Asbestos Disaster,” published this month by Repeater Books, Laurie Kazan-Allen explained that the genesis for this work had been the mesothelioma death of Albert Popple, the granddad of author Tom White. As many other talented people before him had done, White harnessed his grief “to create a work of art that spoke not only of personal traumas but universal truths.” “Bad Dust is,” the reviewer explained “a well-written book which ponders important subjects.” This text will be of interest to people interested in the history of the asbestos tragedy as well as many more readers trying to grapple with wider 21st century issues such as the unending struggle for a sustainable future, corporate accountability and environmental justice. [Read full article]

In recent weeks, international groups have submitted key evidence to the Central Jakarta District Court which is hearing a case brought by asbestos vested interests, represented by the FICMA trade association, against individuals and groups that petitioned the Supreme Court for its endorsement of measures imposing mandatory warning labels on asbestos-cement roofing products. After the Supreme Court upheld this petition (2024), FICMA launched a ferocious legal attack on the petitioners claiming massive financial damages. This letter deconstructs one of FICMA’s principle arguments, namely that failure by the UN to list chrysotile (white) asbestos as a hazardous material supported industry propaganda that exposure to asbestos was “harmless.” [Read full article]

The high-profile participation of ministers and institutions from the Cambodian Government in recent activities in Phnom Penh designed to raise asbestos awareness and implement a transition to asbestos-free technology reconfirmed the Government’s commitment to ending asbestos use and building medical capacity to diagnose and treat citizens injured by toxic exposures. Opening the three-day conference: Improving Diagnosis and Response to Occupational Cancers: Asbestos and Dust Related Diseases Cambodian Health Minister His Excellency Professor Chheang Ra called for the country to prioritize inter-ministerial collaboration to establish frameworks restricting toxic imports and phase-out asbestos consumption. [Read full article]

The timely article by Professor Arthur Frank is a damning indictment of global failures to engage with the threat posed by the continued presence and use of deteriorating asbestos-containing products throughout national infrastructures. Such toxic substances contaminate our homes, schools, hospitals, vehicles, water systems and environment. Almost half the text of this new feature, dealt with the health hazard posed by the use of asbestos pipes to deliver water. The concluding words of this commentary were chilling: “it is alarming that increasing amounts of exposure and increasing findings of ingestion-related asbestos disease continue to be noted in the scientific literature, with little being done to either educate the public or to educate physicians about these risks.” [Read full article]

A new medical scheme was launched by Liz Darlison, from Mesothelioma UK, and Kim Brislane, from Australia’s Asbestos Dust Diseases Research Institute (ADDRI) at an August 27, 2025 meeting in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The initiative is a collaboration of Mesothelioma UK, ADDRI and the International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS). Welcoming news of the positive reception for the pioneering program, IBAS Coordinator Laurie Kazan-Allen said: “Asbestos-related diseases are notoriously difficult to diagnose. Experience has shown that building medical capacity of nursing staff can make a huge impact on the experiences of patients and family members.” [Read full article]

A recent analysis of global asbestos trade figures for 2023 revealed startling developments in four former Soviet Union Central Asian countries. While the world’s two biggest asbestos producers Russia and Kazakhstan consumed a mere 0.76 and 0.72 kilograms/kg per person that year, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan used a staggering 3.4 kg and 2.34 kg per capita and Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan 1.6 kg and 1.57 kg. According to an academic paper by scientists from the Kyrgyz Republic and Italy (2024), awareness of the asbestos hazard and asbestos monitoring capacity in all four countries are extremely low. [Read full article]

The headline of a front-page article in the Daily Mail on August 4, 2025 was as shocking as it was controversial: “Asbestos Kills More Troops than Taliban.” According to the first sentence in the hard-hitting exposé by Steve Boggan: “Asbestos killed nine times more military veterans than there were British victims of the Taliban during the Afghan campaign, government records reveal.” While a handful of other UK news outlets picked up this story, it was widely covered by the Russian media. This development was noteworthy as Russia, the world’s biggest producer of asbestos, continues to deny that asbestos exposures can cause cancers and other deadly diseases. [Read full article]

News that an asbestos-laden 50-year-old Italian ferry – the Moby Drea – was bound for Croatia in July/August 2025 was not well received by people living near the Brodosplit shipyard. The day after the ship arrived, hundreds of people turned up for a high-profile protest which was supported by NGOs and local politicians including the new Mayor of Split. Campaigners continue their efforts to secure answers to the very detailed questions raised by the seemingly illegal import of the toxic waste site that is the Moby Drea. The uproar in Split shows no signs of abating any time soon. [Read full article]

It continues to amaze me how each country needs to do its own research to reaffirm the deadly consequences of asbestos exposures. Newly published reports about the health hazard posed by airborne and waterborne asbestos fibers in Kyrgyzstan, Iran and Canada are typical. According to the texts of these academic papers: “a remarkable amount of chrysotile (white asbestos)” was found in the air and lungs of people living near asbestos processing factories; air samples taken in high-traffic areas had high to very high asbestos fiber concentrations; and samples from rivers in a former asbestos mining region showed “an increase in the concentration of asbestos fibers in the water and sediments.” [Read full article]

During the 20th century, a handful of multinational conglomerates controlled global asbestos production, processing, marketing and sales. For decades, the industry’s dominance of the asbestos agenda enabled it to off-load liabilities onto individuals, communities and governments. The price paid by the injured was horrific and the economic costs incurred were colossal. Recent political and legal developments in the UK, the Netherlands and Australia suggest that traditional corporate asbestos avoidance strategies may have been compromised. [Read full article]

An intriguing and somewhat confusing headline – Trump Administration, Reversing Itself, Won’t Rewrite a Ban on Asbestos – in the July 7, 2025 issue of the New York Times caught my attention. Three weeks previously, the Republican government’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had confirmed its intention to overturn asbestos prohibitions implemented by the previous administration. By July 7, all that had changed. The shift in approach from formal rulemaking to the provision of guidance on complying with the terms of the prohibitions realigns the US with other G7 countries and 36 of the OECD’s 38 members which have banned asbestos. For the time being, the status quo has been reinstated. Whether it remains in place, only time will tell. [Read full article]

In the run-up to the UK’s annual day of asbestos remembrance – Action Mesothelioma Day – the latest national asbestos mortality data was released on July 2, 2025. With the number of deaths from other asbestos-related diseases (ARDs) added to those from mesothelioma, the total annual death toll, once again, exceeds 5,000, more than three times the number of road traffic fatalities and nearly eight times the number of murders which occur every year in the UK. Since the first AMD was held in 2006, it’s been calculated that more than 100,000 Britons have died from asbestos-related diseases. It is tragic to think of the many more lives which will be lost due to government intransigence, bureaucratic obstacles and lack of technical capacity. [Read full article]

Welcoming the new Korean President, who took office on June 4, 2025, civil society groups launched a rolling program of weekly public rallies in the capital to highlight critical issues including the country’s deadly asbestos legacy, the dumping of Fukushima nuclear wastewater and Korea’s humidifier disinfectant disaster. Despite achieving a remarkable success in eradicating the asbestos hazard from schools, dangerous asbestos loopholes and unaddressed problems remain, including failures of compliance with mandatory asbestos regulations; the continued presence of nearly a million asbestos-contaminated buildings; and the lack of support for some groups of asbestos victims. [Read full article]

On June 24, 2025, the Constitutional Court of Slovenia handed down a historic verdict upholding the successor right of relatives to bring a legal action for the asbestos death of a family member. According to the Court, the previous position which barred them from doing so – as laid out in the Act on Remedying the Consequences of Work with Asbestos – was unconstitutional. As a direct consequence of this ruling the National Assembly must adopt measures implementing this policy reversal within one year. In the meantime, heirs of deceased victims whose asbestos-related diseases had been medically recognized may submit compensation claims. [Read full article]

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Demonstration in Woluwe Park, Brussels, 2006

Under cloudy skies, members of Belgian and French Asbestos Victims' Associations from Dunkirk and Bourgogne marched side-by-side in the third annual demonstration organized by ABEVA, the Belgian Association of Asbestos Victims. Erik Jonckheere, ABEVA's Co-chairman, condemned the government which still refuses to recognize the plight of the asbestos injured.

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