Said prohibition seeks to preserve the following rights of workers and population in the national territory: right to life, right to health and right to a safe environment.
The Law 1968 of 2019 prohibited the exploitation, commercialization, distribution, importation and exportation of asbestos as a raw material and all the products that may contain it, aiming at protecting the right to life, right to health and right to a safe environment for all the population in the national territory. As of January 1st, 2021, all the activities related with the productive chain of the asbestos will be prohibited and will be penalized with fines between 100 and 5,000 legal monthly minimum wages, notwithstanding the criminal and disciplinary actions that might be applicable.
As from the date of issuance of the Law, it will not be possible to grant concessions, licenses, permits or extensions to projects related with the exploitation or exploration of asbestos in Colombia. Said activities and operations must initiate their dismantling and abandonment phase, in accordance with the national regulation.
Additionally, the national government will have a term of five years to create: (i) a public policy for the substitution of the installed asbestos; and (ii) the “Plan for Labor Adaptation and Redirection of Production”, which guarantees the right to work and the right to health of the workers involved in the productive chain of asbestos.
Finally, the “National Commission for Asbestos Substitution” and the " Integral Attention Route for People Exposed to Asbestos” will be conformed in order to guarantee the rights of those who have been exposed to asbestos and reach the purpose of eliminating definitely the use use and exploitation of this material in the national territory.