Asbestos Industry Overturned EPA Ban

In 1989, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency attempted to ban most asbestos-containing products, including building materials. Asbestos industry supporters sued, and the Fifth Circuit largely overturned the ban in 1991 after questioning the EPA's cost-benefit analysis and evidence about safer substitutes. The ruling left the United States without a complete asbestos ban for decades. In 2024, the EPA banned chrysotile, the country's only commercially used asbestos type, across six uses, although some phaseouts extend through 2037.

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