§ Mr. Ernie Rossasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list the various recommended levels of exposure to asbestos over the past 20 years; what these were expressed at as fibres per cubic metre of air; and if he will indicate the dates when the exposure levels were changed.
§ Mr. WaddingtonPrior to the introduction of the Asbestos Regulations 1969, Her Majesty's Factory Inspectorate published as general guidance the threshold limit values adopted by the American conference of governmental occupational hygienists. The TLV for all forms of asbestos at that time was 177 particles per cubic centimetre of air; since this was based on a particle, not a fibre, count it cannot be expressed in fibres per cubic metre.
142WIn 1969, new hygiene standards for airborne asbestos dust at the workplace were adopted in published guidance on the interpretation of the Asbestos Regulations 1969.
These were:
for chrysotile, amosite and fibrous anthophyllite:2 fibres per ml of air (2,000,000 fibres/cubic metre;for crocidolite: 0.2 fibres/ml (200,000 fibres/cubic metre)This guidance was revised in 1976 as a result of an interim statement by the advisory committee on asbestos. The hygiene standards were unchanged, but it was stated in addition that exposure to all forms of asbestos dust should be reduced to the minimum that is reasonably practicable. These remain the current criteria for compliance with the Asbestos Regulations and the Health and Safety at Work Act.
The Health and Safety Commission has decided that new control limits should be introduced from 1 January. These are based on recommendations contained in the advisory committee's final report of 1979, and will be:
for crocidolite: 0.2 fibres/ml (200,000 fibres/cubic metre)for amosite: 0.5 fibres/ml (500,000 fibres/cubic metre)for other types of asbestos: 1 fibre/ml(1,000,000 fibres/cubic metre)The overriding requirement to reduce exposure to the minimum reasonably practicable will remain.
§ Mr. Ernie Rossasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he now intends to improve industrial safety standards regarding asbestos exposure limits.
§ Mr. WaddingtonYes. The Government's policy on asbestos is based on the recommendations of the advisory committee on asbestos, many of which would have the effect of improving standards regarding asbestos exposure at the workplace. Work is in progress on the implementation of all these recommendations in conjunction with the two draft European Community directives currently under negotiation in Europe. The Government have also welcomed the Health and Safety Commission's proposals to take urgent action in a number of important areas. These include the introduction of new control limits for exposure to asbestos at the workplace and measures which will improve standards generally in the area of work with asbestos insulation and coating.