Garage workers face a very high risk from asbestos exposure in their daily jobs, due to the fact that car brakes, brake lining and clutches may still utilize asbestos pads or liners. Asbestos is used for brake linings because it is one of the best insulation materials available; even today, and such brakes are on new cars as well as older models. There are no statistics regarding this asbestos use, so late model cars may present as much danger as antiques. When these components are removed, handled, repaired and installed, there is a definite risk of asbestos exposure for everyone in the garage, since the fibers can easily become airborne and float through the entire building.

Asbestos Exposure

Few occupations place an employee in the position of having tiny asbestos fibers falling directly into their face on a regular basis, but this is what most garage mechanics must endure. As auto equipment is handled, countless numbers of unseen asbestos fibers can be released into the air (drum brakes cleaning processes release 6 million fibers into one cubic meter of air), and consequently, they become inhaled or swallowed. Another example may be that after garage workers pull out automobile or truck wheels to expose the drum, asbestos powder may escape. Years ago, some mechanics used air hoses for removal of this dust, and inadvertently inhaled asbestos. Asbestos fibers can become stuck to garage worker's hair and clothing and get carried to their home, thus exposing their families to it. Unfortunately, household vacuums' filters are unable to trap asbestos dust, and anyone in the household-or guests-can inhale it.

Garage Asbestos Use

Asbestos is still legal in the United States, even though it is known to be a carcinogen. It was banned by the EPA in 1989, but the U.S. and Canadian asbestos industry sued. In 1991, the ban was removed. Therefore, asbestos has continuously been used in friction materials like those found in brake pads. Brake manufacturers must ensure that their products attain performance standards, but are not required to list what is actually contained in their brakes. One study found that 38 car markers were no longer using asbestos, but General Motors Corp. said it was employing it in some models. Other manufacturers refuse to say. The National Highway Transportation has no information regarding the amount of older cars which still rely on asbestos-lined equipment, and the federal budget has not funded additional studies.

In 1990, the Occupational Safety and Health Association ruled that certain measures were to be taken, such as using an enclosed cylinder/HEPA vacuum system, a solvent spray can method, or a wet brush recycle method to reduce exposure levels. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported that tests conducted by government-certified laboratories found asbestos contamination in numerous gas stations and brake-repair shops. It also found that auto mechanics are continued to be exposed to dangerous levels of cancer-causing asbestos, but are unaware of the risk. Furthermore, 68% of the samples from brake-repair garages in Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Richmond, Seattle and Washington, D.C. had a contamination level that ranged from 2 to 63%. (To put this into perspective, the Environmental Protection Agency requires workers to wear protective suits and full-face respirators when asbestos contamination is 1 percent or higher.) As an example of the high level asbestos exposure in garages, there is a reported case in the United Kingdom of a police officer visiting one in the line of duty and commenting on the thick haze of asbestos dust in the air. For the next twenty years, he had no other exposure to asbestos, but passed away at age 48 from mesothelioma, which can be contracted no other way than from asbestos inhalation. It is prudent to assume that garage mechanics still have dangerous jobs, and should take steps to ensure their own safety.

What Should Garage Mechanics Know

Any exposure to asbestos is unsafe, and greater or long term exposure increase the risk of developing diseases. After the minute specks of asbestos dust are inhaled or swallowed, the asbestos can remain in the victim's body of decades, during which time they have no symptoms. Yet, their presence of asbestos fibers may cause the onset of several life-threatening diseases. Asbestosis is a non-malignant, but often fatal, disease, and can be acquired as easily as lung cancer, gastrointestinal cancer, esophageal cancer, liver cancer, colon cancer or mesothelioma. (Mesothelioma is a fairly rare malignancy affecting membranes around the lungs and chest.) When asbestos disease occurs-possibly decades after exposure-the individual will find himself or herself having difficulty breathing, which escalates until breathlessness occurs even when at rest. The mesothelioma tumors may be removed surgically if the disease has not already metastasized, but often chemotherapy and radiation are the only options to slow its spread. Sadly, at this point, the victim's life has often been cut considerably shorter. A diagnosis of any asbestos-related disease requires immediate medical and legal assistance by experts.