The impact of asbestos on workers’ health

The Council adopted new EU rules to lower the limit value for asbestos exposure at work and modernise the way we measure it.

Asbestos is a dangerous group of fibrous minerals that was once widely used to strengthen and fireproof construction materials. The European Union banned its use in 2005, but it remains present in many older buildings and infrastructure.

Asbestos causes serious illnesses, such as cancer, with very low survival rates. In 2019 alone, it claimed almost 72 000 lives in the EU. Reducing contact with asbestos is essential to protect workers' health and save lives.

The new rules will reduce workers’ exposure to asbestos, thereby significantly lowering the risk of developing asbestos-related illnesses. That is all the more important given the EU’s goal to boost energy renovation in the EU, which could lead to 35 million buildings being renovated by 2030.

What is asbestos and why is it particularly dangerous for workers?

Due to its high insulation capacity, and high resistance to fire and corrosion, asbestos was widely used in industry until its ban in 2005.

Asbestos is only dangerous to health when its fibres are inhaled. Asbestos fibers can be inhaled in the form of dust after active handling or as a result of degrading asbestos material. Workers who come into contact with asbestos are, therefore, particularly at risk.

It can take up to 30 years for the first symptoms of a disease caused by asbestos to appear. According to the EU occupational diseases statistics gathered by Eurostat, 78% of recognised cases of occupational cancer in the EU are related to asbestos.

 

What are the most common types of occupational cancer related to asbestos?

This chart shows the number of occupational cancer cases related to asbestos by type for the period 2013-2019.

Data for Germany, Greece, Portugal not available.

• Source: Eurostat

Which workers are most at risk of exposure to asbestos?

It is estimated that between 4.1 and 7.3 million workers are exposed to asbestos in the EU, mostly in the construction sector.

Which other sectors are exposed to asbestos?

• Source: Joint study from FoBIG, RPA, COWI and EPRD

Will asbestos exposure grow or fall in the future?

• Source: Joint study from FoBIG, RPA, COWI and EPRD

Even though asbestos has been banned in the EU since 2005, construction workers’ exposure to asbestos is expected to grow in the coming years.

Why?

Many of the 220 million building units that were built before the ban are likely to be renovated, adapted or demolished. Some of these renovations will be encouraged by the 'Renovation Wave' initiative, which aims to make buildings more energy-efficient and contribute to the European Green Deal’s goal of achieving a climate-neutral EU by 2050.

Therefore it is ever more important to reduce the current allowed exposure limit to asbestos to better protect these workers’ health.

• Renovation wave initiative (European Commission)
• European Green Deal (background information)

In which areas of the EU do residential buildings currently have the most asbestos?

The graph shows the average estimated quantity of asbestos in residential buildings (kg/dwelling) in the EU by province and small region.

• Source: JRC (2023)

How do the new rules better protect people at work?

The new rules reduce by ten times the maximum limit of asbestos to which a worker can be exposed to.

From the current maximum air concentration of 0.1 fibres of asbestos per cm³ to 0.01 fibres of asbestos per cm³. Moreover, after a maximum transition period of six years, EU countries will be required to measure asbestos levels with electron microscopy (EM), a more sophisticated system than the one currently used (phase-contrast microscopy or PCM).

They also provide for strengthened preventive and protective measures, such as obtaining special permits for asbestos removal and checking if there is asbestos in older buildings before starting demolition or maintenance work.

The new exposure limit is expected to significantly reduce workers’ risk of developing cancer and therefore improve their quality of life.

The greater the exposure to asbestos, the greater the risk of developing cancer

This graph shows the relationship between exposure to asbestos and the risk of developing cancer. It also indicates the current exposure limit (0.1 fibres per cm³) and the new one (0.01 fibres per cm³).

• Source: European Commission

What other benefits do lower exposure to asbestos bring?

Lower exposure to asbestos also contributes to reducing healthcare costs and keeping workers healthy and productive during their working lives, resulting in significant savings for employers.

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See also:

• Protecting workers: health and safety at work (background information)
• Asbestos, Council and Parliament strike a deal on new rules protecting workers (press release, 27 June 2023)
• Proposal to amend the asbestos at work directive (European Commission)
• Protection from asbestos at work: Council votes to reduce exposure limits (press release, 23 October 2023)