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Japanese Asbestos Problems
Thursday, September 01, 2005
Since earlier this summer there have been a large number of articles on the government of Japan finally admitting that there is a problem with asbestos and their workers.
The recent activity started when farm equipment maker Kubota admitted that as many as 79 of their workers have died of mesothelioma as a result of exposure to asbestos. There was also a higher incidence of mesothelioma among residents living near the manufacturing plant. The health ministry reported that 900 people died in 2003 from the disease.
Japan was slow to ban asbestos and now will most likely see a huge spike in remediation activity as we saw in the US in the 1990's.
After the revelations at Kubota there was a push to inspect public buildings like schools and offices. A few days ago the press reported that 1 in 5 Japanese houses (about 5 million) were built with asbestos containing roof tiles made by Kubota and Matsushita Electric. Tiles were made from cement mixed with up to 25% Asbestos. Because of their light weight they were thought to cause less damage during an earthquake. These could create an exposure hazard if they are damaged or when a house is demolished. Incredibly these tiles were produced up until 2003. Japan has yet to phase out asbestos in its manufacturing. It is scheduled to completely phase out in a few more years.
The Japanese highlight a problem. Asbestos had many properties that made it a superior manufacturing material, notably being lightweight and fire-resistant. After asbestos was integrated into manufacturing, there was a lot of resistance to removing it, even in the face of health risks.
The Japanese government is now contemplating a fund to compensate the victims. As in the US, I predict a number of companies will go into bankrupcy. In the US it was over 40. Not all of the money went to victims or their heirs. This group should have first priority. Many suits went through only on the basis of theoretical exposure. This type of suit deprives those who suffered health problems like mesothelioma and asbestosis.
