Members of the European Parliament Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (EMPL) had an exchange with the Commissioner for Social Affairs, Nicolas Schmit, on Tuesday 25 October, during which they expressed their disappointment with the proposed directive on asbestos exposure (see EUROPE 13031/20). Their first reactions, on 27 September, were already mixed.
Although this proposal is generally a step in the right direction by reducing the current limit values for occupational exposure to asbestos from 0.1 to 0.01 fibres/cm3, the Commission still lacks “ambition” and the proposal is “clearly insufficient”, said Cindy Franssen (EPP, Belgian) and Sara Mathieu (Greens/EFA, Belgian), supported by their colleagues from the S&D group and The Left.
The European Parliament voted in October 2021 on a “very ambitious report, supported by 675 members”, Ms Franssen recalled, and had set a limit value of 0.001 fibres/cm3. The Commission’s choice is therefore “very disappointing”, said Ms Mathieu, especially as some Member States are already going below this limit value, and she does not understand why the Commission could not go further.
For the European Commissioner, it was a question of remaining “realistic”, he replied, and of respecting the consultations carried out in the various working groups that had led to the retention of this limit. The Commissioner also asked the MEPs to understand that it is not only a question of setting a limit value, but also of “being able to implement it”, and that a more restricted limit value could not necessarily be applied. The Commission therefore believes that its decision will already save hundreds of lives and prevent many cases of occupational cancer, with asbestos being responsible for 78% of cancers recognised in the EU as being of occupational origin and causing between 100,000 and 200,000 deaths per year worldwide.
The Commissioner also had to assure MEPs that other announcements made on 29 September would not go unheeded, such as plans for a general building survey before renovation or demolition work begins. A register will have to be kept of the presence of asbestos in all EU buildings and of the risks to construction workers.
On the question of the management of asbestos-related waste, Nicolas Schmit also promised that the reflection launched on the subject by his team would lead to specific courses of action by the end of 2023.
In addition, MEPs used this exchange of views with the Commissioner to reiterate their requests concerning the recommendation on minimum income to encourage active inclusion (see EUROPE 13031/21) and the 2023 year of professional qualifications.
First Czech compromise
The Czech Presidency of the EU Council, for its part, has submitted a first draft compromise to the Member States, who will debate the new asbestos directive on 31 October. As the Member States do not intend to reconsider the limit value adopted by the Commission, the Presidency clarifies certain aspects of the Commission’s text, for example the method for measuring the limit value of 0.01 fibres/cm3.
“Although it does not allow a counting of the smallest fibres detrimental to health, optical microscopy, notably phase-contrast microscope (PCM), is currently the most used method for the regular measuring of respirable fibres, including asbestos. The opinion of the Advisory Committee on Safety and Health at Work (ACSH) acknowledges the importance of replacing PCM with a more sensitive methodology based on electron microscopy (EM). Member States should be able to choose between the two methods when carrying out fibre counting”, the text states.
Link to the compromise: https://aeur.eu/f/3s5 (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)