Dust, general asbestos

Average industrial dust Grinding dust, dry buffing lint, coffee beans, granite dust, silica flour, general materials handling, brick cutting, clay dust, foundry, limestone dust, asbestos dust 3500-4000 18-20... 

Pneumoconiosis A chronic disease of the lungs resulting from the inhalation of various kinds of dusts. The pneumoconioses which include siderosis (iron oxide), silicosis (free silica), asbestosis (asbestos), etc., generally require a period of years for development. 

Asbestos fibers have been linked to the high incidence of lung cancer and mesothelioma (an otherwise rare pleural cancer) in asbestos workers and are considered to pose a threat to the population at large. Some 5000 deaths per annum in the United States have been attributed to mineral fiber contacts. There is now evidence that the true asbestoses such as amosite or crocidolite have a much higher association with mesothelioma than does the chrysotile used in most commercial asbestos, but controversy continues regarding the health hazards of asbestoses. The problem is evidently a general one with dust particles and fibers of any kind that are small enough... 

Chrysotile asbestos was found in most settled dust samples at levels generally less than 1%, but in levels as high as 20% by volume in material coating a steel beam in the debris at Ground Zero. Low levels of amphibole asbestos fibers were identified only in one settled dust sample collected north of the WTC complex (Chatfield and Kominsky, 2001). 

Asbestos is a known carcinogen. Take care when sampling. While in an asbestos-containing atmosphere, a properly selected and fit- tested respirator should be worn. Take samples in a manner to cause the least amount of dust. Follow these general guidelines ... 

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