Connecticut residents honored for public health asbestos initiative

The US Environmental Protection Agency has honored three Hamden, Connecticut residents for their efforts in a Department of Public Health Asbestos initiative that helps protect children from asbestos exposure. Ron Skomro is the supervisor of the state Department of Public Health’s Asbestos Program. Along with Brian Tool and Kristen Day, also of the state Department of Public health, Skomro succeeded in changing the way art clay is labeled and sold after discovering that some clays labeled as non-toxic were contaminated with asbestos. Asbestos exposure is linked to the development of serious diseases such as asbestosis, and lethal cancers such as mesothelioma, as well as lung cancer. Ron Skomro, Brian Tool, and Kristen Day started their efforts after discovering that elevated levels of asbestos had been found in clay used in a school art room. Talc is added to clay to lower the temperature at which it needs to be heated during the manufacturing process. Some forms of talc are naturally contaminated with small amounts of asbestos, and with asbestos finding its way into school art room clay, students were being exposed to asbestos on a regular basis. Asbestos is a danger only when it’s airborne and can be inhaled: with asbestos embedded in very small amounts in the clay, exposure wasn’t likely, but with even a tiny possibility present, the state Department of Public Health had to act to protect local children. After some initial investigation, Ron Skomro, Brian Tool, and Kristen Day found that clay made using asbestos-contaminated talc was being sold to many schools and institutions in Connecticut. As a result, the state DPH told schools they would have to inventory their clay stocks and begin working with clay suppliers to eliminate the sale of the asbestos-contaminated clay. One major supplier of the clay agreed voluntarily to cease shipping talc-containing clay, and also volunteered to exchange clay they had previously sold so that schools could obtain fresh supplies of non-toxic clay without losing money. The DPH also asked that the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission review the issue. As a result, the Art and Creative Materials Institute, which works with the CPSC, told its members that they could no longer label clay as “non-toxic” if it contained talc. For their efforts in stopping the sale of the asbestos-contaminated clay, Ron Skomro, Brian Tool, and Kristen Day were awarded a 2008 Environmental Merit Award by the Environmental Protection Agency at a ceremony in Boston, Massachusetts. (Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News)