[FAILED] GA Resolution: Repeal: “AC, D, and WP"

[Lenlyvit]

Repeal: “Asbestos Consumption, Disposal And Worker Protection”

A resolution to repeal previously passed legislation.

Category: Repeal

Resolution: GA#435

Proposed by: The Wallenburgian World Assembly Offices

General Assembly Resolution #435 “Asbestos Consumption, Disposal and Worker Protection” (Category: Environmental; Industry Affected: All Businesses - Mild) shall be struck out and rendered null and void.

Acknowledging the several health concerns associated with exposure to asbestos crystals,

Cognizant of the socioeconomic necessity of reliable and long-lasting housing and public infrastructure, which many member states could not possibly afford without the use of reinforced concrete,

Recognizing that one-size-fits-none mandates are hardly realistic for a membership of states with wildly varying dependence upon asbestos-reinforced concrete,

Regretting that lax or nonexistent requirements for asbestos-related inspections, as well as absurdly restrictive safety regulations, actually increase the long-term risk of public harm from asbestos due to failure to remove exposed asbestos densely inhabited environments,

Alarmed at the suggestion that large fractions of the populations of member states should be deprived of homes, schools, and places of work due to the limitations of construction technology,

Acknowledging that the membership of this Assembly is prepared to bring into law a well-considered and less reckless replacement to the target resolution,

The World Assembly hereby repeals General Assembly Resolution #435 "Asbestos Consumption, Disposal and Worker Protection" for the following causes:

1. The target's blanket ban on the production of asbestos and asbestos-reinforced materials will halt nearly all large-scale infrastructure construction and housing projects in many member nations, particularly those which do not enjoy the technological and logistical privileges of geopolitical and imperialist fortune.

2. The target's uncompromising attitude toward the use of asbestos totally disregards what construction options are actually available to member states.

3. The target provides no clear requirements with regard to asbestos testing or reporting, leaving it to member states to determine whether, how often, and in what manner buildings of any given category must be tested for asbestos and whether any entity is liable to report a risk of asbestos exposure. As a result, the target creates two classes of entities: those architects, engineers, and property holders foolish enough to investigate or disclose the existence of asbestos in a structure and thereby suffer the punishments and restrictions of the target, and those that do not do so and thereby benefit their intense property and monetary interest in jeopardizing public health.

4. The target's unreasonably stringent standards for the demolition of buildings containing asbestos result in a requirement that buildings containing asbestos concrete be deconstructed brick-by-brick "in order to avoid creating asbestos dust" by small teams working in "short, non-continuous" shifts. This makes the replacement and disposal of asbestos-reinforced concretes a logistical nightmare for any nation in which asbestos is a common ingredient in construction material. As a result, the target's own mandates increase risk to public health as a result of prolonged asbestos exposure.

5. By prohibiting the marketing of rooms or buildings containing asbestos within their concrete, the target will produce the effect that asbestos-reinforced buildings be gradually emptied of tenants, workers, and inhabitants, regardless of the actual health hazard the structure may present.

a. Such prohibitions will inevitably result in mass homelessness, mass unemployment, and general economic ruin for any member nation that frequently relies upon asbestos to reinforce concrete structures and actually manages to enforce these building condemnations.

b. These effects will severely impede the capacity of member states to carry out their duties to those under their jurisdiction, including requirements by various preexisting World Assembly resolutions to provide for the basic needs of the public.

This is the discussion thread. To cast your vote, go HERE

[The CFR of Kaltovar]

The TEMPEST Council have dispatched a diplomat, Major Andrea Prescova, to express their majority (62.3%) opinion:

"Although the proposal to repeal the regulation of asbestos does bring up some good points, it's authors are clearly misguided. A total repeal of the legislation without replacing asbestos regulations is completely uncalled for, regardless of the supposed economic impact it would have on less advanced member states.

Rather than completely reversing the ban on Asbestos Kaltovar would support eliminating the "Brick by brick, small teams" disassembly policy in favor of more efficient large scale asbestos removal methods. There is no logical reason to constrain the removal process to such "Small teams" or demand "Brick by brick" activity. In fact, many structures are not built from bricks at all, so the requirement is absurd on it's face.

Although the asbestos removal laws clearly need to be re-examined, we do not support relaxing the reasonable regulations of asbestos no matter how it will impact less advanced nations. Instead, we would support new legislation to financially and technologically help asbestos-dependent nations in both remediation and creating new asbestos-free buildings to replace those which must be destroyed for public safety.

The solution to our problems does not lay in rolling back decades of progress on asbestos regulation, but rather in clarifying those regulations and establishing coherent programs to mitigate their negative externalities. Thank you for your time, comrades, and may your days be free from war."

[Pantso]

Mar 13, 2023 0:26:57 GMT -5 The CFR of Kaltovar said:

The TEMPEST Council have dispatched a diplomat, Major Andrea Prescova, to express their majority (62.3%) opinion:

"Although the proposal to repeal the regulation of asbestos does bring up some good points, it's authors are clearly misguided. A total repeal of the legislation without replacing asbestos regulations is completely uncalled for, regardless of the supposed economic impact it would have on less advanced member states.

Rather than completely reversing the ban on Asbestos Kaltovar would support eliminating the "Brick by brick, small teams" disassembly policy in favor of more efficient large scale asbestos removal methods. There is no logical reason to constrain the removal process to such "Small teams" or demand "Brick by brick" activity. In fact, many structures are not built from bricks at all, so the requirement is absurd on it's face.

Although the asbestos removal laws clearly need to be re-examined, we do not support relaxing the reasonable regulations of asbestos no matter how it will impact less advanced nations. Instead, we would support new legislation to financially and technologically help asbestos-dependent nations in both remediation and creating new asbestos-free buildings to replace those which must be destroyed for public safety.

The solution to our problems does not lay in rolling back decades of progress on asbestos regulation, but rather in clarifying those regulations and establishing coherent programs to mitigate their negative externalities. Thank you for your time, comrades, and may your days be free from war."

We have expressed similar reservations but it seems that at this time the WA currently lacks a mechanism to *amend* a resolution. The only way to implement change is to repeal and replace. Delegates from The Republic of Pantso try to take into consideration the likelihood of the timely passage of an improved resolution when reviewing these "repeal" bills and recommends other WA members consider the same.

(As I understand it NS does not have a technical mechanism to edit existing amendments and there are no plans for the foreseeable future to implement one. Repeal and Replace is what we have. There was a discussion in this forum for a better procedure to do this but I lost the thread, if I can find it I'll telegram you with a link.)