This week I discuss with my colleague, Dr. Richard E. Engler, Director of Chemistry for B&C and The Acta Group, our consulting affiliate, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) important and recently issued first final risk management rule for chrysotile asbestos. Those of us in the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) community know asbestos occupies a special place in TSCA’s checkered past, and EPA’s final rule is an important chapter in that book. Whether you care about asbestos or not, by any independent standard this final rule is a big deal for several reasons. There is no better expert than Rich Engler to discuss with me what this rule does, what it tells us about EPA’s approach to risk management under TSCA, why it is relevant to any chemical undergoing review by EPA, why in all probability neither industry nor the non-governmental organization (NGO) community is happy, and why litigation may well be in our future.