Revised Draft Document for Public Review and Comment
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) requests comment on the revised draft Current Intelligence
Bulletin (CIB) “Asbestos Fibers and Other Elongated Mineral Particles: State of the Science and Roadmap for Research” NIOSH
Docket Number NIOSH 099-A.
This Information is distributed solely for the purpose of pre-dissemination peer review under applicable information quality guidelines.
It has not been formally disseminated by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. It does not represent and should not
be construed to represent any agency determination or policy.
Asbestos has been a highly visible issue in public health for over three decades and abundant information is in the scientific literature.
However, in part because of the complexity in the mineralogy, the scientific literature has various inconsistencies and inconclusive
evidence which have led to uncertainties in identifying and applying the term asbestos for health and regulatory purposes.
This has prompted NIOSH to convene a workgroup to investigate this matter. NIOSH is currently considering the scientific research
needs to reduce the uncertainties in the science used to develop worker protection policies for asbestos fibers and other elongated mineral particles
(EMPs). Subsequently, it is expected that the products of this research will influence how NIOSH views occupational exposure to various
minerals when there is a potential for inhalational exposure to EMPs. This document is intended as one step in the process. NIOSH intends to pursue
partnerships with other Federal Agencies and other stakeholders to help focus the scope of the research that can contribute to the
scientific understanding of asbestos fibers and other EMPs, to fund and conduct the research activities, and to develop and disseminate
educational materials describing results from the EMP research and their implications for occupational and public health policies and
practices.
As the Federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of worker injury and illness,
NIOSH is undertaking a reappraisal of how to ensure appropriate protection of workers from exposure to asbestos fibers and other EMPs.
NIOSH prepared a first draft of the document, then titled Asbestos and Other Mineral Fibers: A Roadmap for Scientific Research, and
invited comments on the occupational health issues identified and the framework for research. As a result of comments received during
the public and expert peer review process, NIOSH has substantially revised the earlier draft and is now disseminating for public comment
a revised draft of the document titled Asbestos and Other Mineral Fibers: State of the Science and Roadmap for Research (“Roadmap”).
The purpose of the Roadmap is to outline major areas of controversy and to recommend a research framework that can serve as a guide for
the development of specific research programs within and across disciplines. The intended goals of the research to be undertaken are to
provide answers to current scientific questions, reduce scientific uncertainties, and provide a sound scientific foundation for future
policy development so that optimal health protection can be assured.
NIOSH is seeking comments on the scope and presentation of scientific information used to support the development of a research framework for asbestos
fibers and other EMPs. Of special interest are comments on the following revisions to the draft document: 1) a discussion of particle
characteristics (e.g., dimension, chemistry) and their potential influence on biological responses (Sections 1.6.1, 1.6.2, 1.6.3,
and 1.6.4); 2) toxicological research on EMPs (Section 2.2); 3) epidemiological studies of workers exposed to EMPs (Section 2.3.3)
and 4) capabilities and limitations of analytical instruments used to identify EMPs (Section 2.4.2). Also of special interest are
comments on the entirely new content in the document: 1) a rephrasing of the NIOSH recommended exposure limit (REL) for asbestos
and related EMPs (Section 1.8.2); 2) the inclusion of how the proposed research could lead to the development of improved public
health policies for asbestos and other EMPs (Section 2.5); 3) clinical issues (Section 1.4); and 4) recommendations for clinical
research (Section 2.3.4).
NIOSH continues to be interested in available and forthcoming research results that can help answer the questions set forth in
the Roadmap, as well as information on existing workplace exposure data, health effects, and control technologies.
Revised Draft
Document for Public Review and Comment |
NIOSH CIB: Asbestos Fibers and Other Elongated Mineral Particles:
State of the Science and Roadmap for Research (June 2008 draft)
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revisedNIOSHAsbestosRoadmap_2008_draft.pdf
(142 pages, 1,600kb |
Supporting Materials |
Prior draft and supporting information
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NIOSH Docket Number NIOSH-099
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The comment period for this Docket closes at 5:00 p.m. EDT on September 30, 2008.
Submitted comments on the revised draft Roadmap should indicate the pertinent page(s) and line(s) in the draft document
being addressed. To submit comments, please identify them as relating to
NIOSH Docket Number 099-A and use one of these options:
- Send NIOSH comments using this online
form
- Send comments by email.
- Fax comments to the NIOSH Docket Office: 513-533-8285
- Send by Mail to:
NIOSH Mailstop: C-34
Robert A. Taft Lab.
4676 Columbia Parkway
Cincinnati, Ohio 45226
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