The European construction sector, including the European Construction Industry Federation (FIEC) and the European Builders Confederation (EBC), has given a lukewarm welcome to the report by Véronique Trillet-Lenoir (Renew Europe, French) on the revision of the directive on occupational exposure to asbestos, which will be discussed in the European Parliament’s Employment Committee on Monday 6 February (see EUROPE 13102/12).
While these two organisations welcome the MEP’s decision not to lower the limit value proposed by the Commission (0.01 fibres/cm3), they believe that the proposed 3-year transition period to adopt better technology for detecting asbestos fibres, namely the electron microscopy technique, is too short for companies.
“A 3-year transition period is not enough for construction companies and must be extended; the 7-year transition period unanimously proposed by the Council is more realistic”, they say.
A short- or medium-term revision clause (to see whether to lower this limit value), as suggested by the MEP, would also be “highly counterproductive, as it would trigger uncertainty among businesses”, say the two entities.
They also call for more ambition regarding financial support to companies and owners to assess the presence of asbestos and, generally, financial support for training.
A “too strict certification scheme or other additional administrative burden” should also be avoided, while Ms Trillet-Lenoir’s report also looks at the certification rules for asbestos removal organisations.
Asbestos not a problem of the past
“With the adoption of the European Green Deal and the Renovation Wave for Europe, it is expected that 35 million buildings will undergo maintenance, be renovated or otherwise be demolished by 2030. Therefore, between 4.1 and 7.3 million workers in the construction and renovation sector, in waste management and in the firefighting services will be at increased risk of exposure to asbestos in the next decade”, commented the European Trade Union Institute for research (ETUI) in a statement.
“Today, asbestos kills around 90,000 people from lung cancers and mesothelioma every year in the EU while occupational cancers cost between €270 and 610 billion annually, or 1.8 to 4.1 % of EU GDP”, notes the ETUI, noting that asbestos is therefore not a “problem of the past”.
Link to the position: https://aeur.eu/f/57r (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)