Beryllium Awareness and Disease Prevention

Workers throughout the United States have been poisoned by particulate Beryllium exposure without their knowlege or under false information. Corporate procedures require executives to deny the dangers inherent in the production of their products to preven t liability, and Brush Engineered Materials Inc. is no different from any corporation. The President has taken steps to help protect workers, but the resolution may fall terribly short without the efforts of normal citizens.
We are asking Brush Wellman to provide testing for the civilian neighbors of all of their facilities at their cost, so that the disease does not go undiagnosed.
We are asking that Brush Wellman "step up" in an uncorporate like manner and take responsibility for the havoc that Ch ronic Beryllium disease wreaks on all of its victims, instead of denying the damage until the court systems require them to act differently. It's time for one company to actually be a "good neighbor" instead of just claiming to be a good neighbor.
Peo ple with Beryllium disease eventually lose the ability to breathe as scar tissue builds up in their lungs and prevents oxygen transfer into the blood. During this process, their quality of life is dramatically affected. To date, there is no accepted feder al limit for civilian exposure to particulate airbourne Beryllium that has proven to be protective. Yet Brush Wellman continually holds a standard that has been proven to be ineffective at preventing the disease among even its own workers.
Beryllium is a fundamental part of electronic components that all of us use. From Computers to Cell Phones, it increases the conductivity of copper and the strength of alloyed metals. It has some truly magical properties, but there is a very real possibility that Ber yllium may not be manufactured safely at any exposure standard. More frightening is the fact that people who live near the plants are not tested for the disease, and the disease may be easily misdiagnosed as, for example, Sarcoidosis. People who machine B eryllium and its alloys have become sick just by being in the same room, and yet Brush Wellman keeps making blanket statements denying the toxicity of their product.
We need your help to get Brush Wellman and Gordon Harnett to act responsibly in this matter. They're waiting for the government to set regulations, and actively lobbying to make those regulations as loose as possible. Don't let our senators be bought off. Sign this petition and help prevent the sickness and death that results from breath ing beryllium dust. Tell Brush that you care about how they treat their workers, and tell our politicians that you won't let them be bought off on this issue. Brush has strong supporters in congress, and deep pockets. Only through numbers can we handle th is issue effectively.

Sincerely,
The Undersigned