The Environmental Protection Agency is asking the courts to stop a company from using asbestos insulation to help protect workers from asbestos exposure.
The agency asked the courts on Tuesday to prevent a California company from telling workers that the asbestos insulation used to protect them in the building they work in will also protect them from asbestos-caused illness and death.
In the lawsuit, filed on behalf of several people, the agency alleges that the company, the California Air Resources Board, and a subcontractor used asbestos insulation in the air conditioners used by the workers, who work in a building where asbestos was installed in the ceiling.
The suit also alleges that workers who were working in the asbestos-covered ceiling in the early 1990s suffered lung and cardiovascular diseases that have worsened since.
According to the lawsuit filed on Monday, the company had to hire a consultant to study the health effects of asbestos exposure and determine how to safely use the insulation, which had been around since the 1940s.
The suit seeks class-action status for workers who have been exposed to asbestos since they were children.
“If a worker suffers a lung or cardiovascular disease, it can take decades for their health to recover, which makes this case particularly important,” the agency said in a statement.
On Monday, a federal judge in Seattle rejected the company’s request to stop the use of asbestos insulation and instead issued a preliminary injunction, which will stay the suit pending the outcome of the court case.
The agency said that the injunction will not prevent future asbestos-related health issues from being brought to the attention of the courts.
California regulators have been trying to stop asbestos use for years.
A similar lawsuit was filed in August 2015, and an EPA investigation found that the insulation used in air conditioner air conditioning units has been linked to lung cancer and other health problems.
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