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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].

A report entitled Civic Observatory on Safety at School was presented to the Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of the Italian Parliament, on September 18, 2025. The disturbing contents stated that asbestos contamination was still present in 2,292 school buildings, affecting up to 400,000 students and teachers on a daily basis. The cities with the highest number of toxic schools were: Genoa, Milan and Turin. See: Amianto, killer sempre vivo in 2mila scuole (record a Genova, Milano e Torino): rischiano la vita 350mila alunni e 50mila docenti, Ata e ds [Asbestos, killer always alive in 2,000 schools (record in Genoa, Milan and Turin): 350,000 pupils and 50,000 teachers, Ata and DS risk their lives].

The link below will take you to a September 25th posting on LinkedIn by Nick Garland, a specialist in asbestos management and removal. In his comprehensive exposition, Garland focused on the hazard posed by ingested rather than inhaled asbestos, such as takes place when consumers use water delivered via asbestos-cement pipes. Unfortunately, there is little available information about the location and number of these toxic pipes in the UK, most of which are 50+ years old. The author concluded: “there seems to be enough evidence to take the possibility of a risk posed by [asbestos contaminated] water supplies very seriously.” See: Asbestos in the water – an infrastructure timebomb?

The article cited below discussed a recent dissertation submitted by a Masters student from Rio de Janeiro that examined Brazil’s asbestos history with a particular focus on the legal disputes involved in the attempts to outlaw asbestos production and use between 1995 and 2017. The actions of Eternit, S.A., its subsidiary Sociedade Anônima Mineração de Amianto (SAMA), the Brazilian Chrysotile Institute, the Government of Goiás State, the Brazilian Association of the Asbestos-Exposed (ABREA) and others were analyzed in some detail. See: Por que o amianto, proibido em vários países em razão dos riscos à saúde, ainda é explorado no Brasil? [Why is asbestos, banned in other countries due to health risks, still mined in Brazil?].

During a committee meeting on September 23, 2025, members of the Kenyan Parliament called for urgent action for the removal of all asbestos roofing from the built environment due to the health risks posed by the continued presence of the toxic material. Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale told committee members that according to an asbestos audit conducted by the National Environment Management Authority, asbestos roofs were still present on public buildings despite a national asbestos ban. The pace of replacement work was, Duale said, slow. See: MPs Issue Directives to NEMA on Banning Asbestos Roofing Across the Country.

A statement from lawyers representing claimants whose victory at the Sapporo District Court on September 18, 2025, called on the defendant building materials manufacturers – A&A Material, Taiheiyo Cement, and Nichias – to “promptly acknowledge their responsibility in this lawsuit, apologize to the victims, and reach a settlement as soon as possible.” The 13 successful plaintiffs had contracted asbestos-related diseases as a result of workplace exposures at construction sites. See: 北海道建設アスベスト4陣訴訟、札幌地裁で勝訴判決（声明 [Hokkaido Construction Asbestos Fourth Group Lawsuit Wins Sapporo District Court Ruling (Statement)].

On September 25, 2025, in the case of M/s. U.P. Asbestos Limited v. State of Rajasthan & Others (and connected matters) Judges BV Nagarathna and KV Viswanathan of India’s Supreme Court ruled that a 2007 sales tax exemption allowed by the Rajasthan Government for local asbestos-cement sheet and brick manufacturers was discriminatory. The legislation which had imposed sales tax on similar goods from other states was, said the Court, “discriminatory” and “unconstitutional.” See: Supreme Court Strikes Down Rajasthan VAT Exemption for Local Asbestos Manufacturers as Discriminatory.

Although good progress is being made in South Korea’s program to eradicate the asbestos hazard from schools by 2027 – “the average removal rate across the country is 87.2%” – the pace of asbestos removal work differs from province to province. Unfortunately, there remain 451 schools in Gyeonggi Province and 52 in Incheon City, part of the Seoul Metropolitan area, where asbestos contamination persists. See: “아이들 교실에 1급 발암물질이…” 경기 451곳·인천 52곳 석면 미제거 [“Class 1 carcinogens in children's classrooms...” Asbestos not removed from 451 locations in Gyeonggi Province and 52 locations in Incheon].

A segment broadcast on Metro TV, a free-to-air TV news network in West Jakarta, on September 23 2025 included an interview with Indonesian medical specialist Dr Anna Suraya on the human hazards posed by asbestos. The doctor explained that several debilitating diseases and deadly cancers had been linked to asbestos exposures. Before the interview outside the Central Jakarta Court was filmed, Dr Suraya had provided testimony in a lawsuit brought by an asbestos trade association against individuals and organizations that had petitioned the Supreme Court to mandate the use of warning labels on all asbestos roofing products. See: Aktivis Konsumen Digugat Industri Asbes Rp7,9 Triliun [Consumer Activist Sued by Asbestos Industry for IDR 7.9 Trillion].

In an attempt to draw the line under the scandal which arose over the sale by Johnson & Johnson (J&J) of asbestos-contaminated talc-based baby powder, the company is negotiating a $700 million settlement with 43 US states and the District of Columbia, and a $6.5 billion offer to settle most of the pending personal injury cancer lawsuits. As the article cited below pointed out: “the path to final resolution remains complex” after multiple attempts at bankruptcy filings had been rejected by US courts. See: Johnson & Johnson Confronts the End of its Talc Legacy with Multi-Billion Dollar Settlements.

Following a ruling by the Rome Court of Appeal, which recognized that “all the inhabitants of Priolo, Melilli, Augusta and Syracuse have been exposed to asbestos dust,” calls were made for an interministerial collaboration to progress efforts to eradicate asbestos contamination, institute medical and health screening programs and provide pension benefits to individuals classed as high risk in these locations. See: Amianto, ”cittadini esposti.” Pressing dopo la sentenza della Corte d’Appello: “Bonifiche e risarcimenti” [Asbestos, “exposed citizens.” After ruling by the Court of Appeal Pressing for: “Reclamation and compensation”].

Citing health and safety concerns, the Kenyan government plans to spend 648 million Kenya Shilling (US$50,000) to replace decades-old asbestos-cement water pipes at the Aguthi Water Project in the Tetu Constituency. According to Water Cabinet Secretary Eric Mugaa, the 1970s pipes can cause multiple health problems, including cancer, and need to be renewed as a matter or public health. They will be replaced with modern High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) pipes, which are “more durable and environmentally friendly,” said Mugaa. See: Government to Spend KSh648 Million to Replace Asbestos Water Pipes in Tetu.

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]

On June 16, 2025, President Donald Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) confirmed its intention to overturn asbestos prohibitions implemented by the previous administration. According to the EPA’s motion, the process of re-evaluating the 2024 regulations would take at least 30 months and most likely a lot longer. While polluters and vested interests – some of whom formerly employed current EPA officials – are no doubt, delighted with this news others have warned of the dire consequences for American citizens of future asbestos exposures. [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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