Approximately 47,000 people die
from asbestos-related causes in Europe each year, the European
Economic and Social Committee (EESC) said Thursday.
That is 50% higher than originally believed and double the
number of deaths related to road accidents, the committee added.
"Children and teachers in schools, DIY enthusiasts and
maintenance workers are among the new risk groups joining the
long list of workers and members of the public increasingly at
risk from asbestos infested buildings across Europe," EESC said
in a statement.
Although banned in 2005, asbestos is still found in many
places, and now interventions underway across the continent in
the name of energy efficiency are putting more people at risk.
Hence countries such as Italy that provide incentives for
building upgrades are urged "to train the workforce, both within
companies specialised in energy efficiency and in ordinary
(construction) firms," said Enrico Gibellieri, a member of the
EESC's consultative committee on industrial change.
"We are asking every country to map its asbestos and draw
up plans for disposal, using national and structural funds," the
EESC's asbestos co-rapporteur continued.
Estimates put the cost of eliminating the problem as
between 10 and 15 billion euros in the larger EU member states.
"We are also calling for greater efforts to diagnose and
acknowledge the disease and for a homogeneous system (to be
introduced) across Europe for victim compensation," Gibellieri
said.
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