Chrysotile AsbestosThe Canadian government is considering re-opening an asbestos mine in order to get new supplies of chrysotile asbestos. A proposal to convert Jeffrey Mine, an open pit mine that supplied much of the export supply of chrysotile asbestos, into an underground operation is being considered by the government despite global protests and knowledge of the dangers of exposure to asbestos.
Asbestos, a naturally occurring mineral, is well known for its heat, fire and erosion resistant properties. For almost a century, until the early 1980’s, asbestos was added to thousands of industrial and construction products. In the early 80’s, many developed countries began imposing bans on the use of asbestos, as well as regulations for management, removal and disposal of asbestos due to its toxic nature.
Asbestos, decades after exposure, causes serious and fatal illnesses, such as mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer. Over a hundred thousand a year worldwide die of an asbestos related disease each year, and it is estimated to be the cause of one third of all occupational cancers.
Canada itself is in the process of removing asbestos from its buildings and products and has a ban on the use of asbestos in most circumstances. However, Canada continues to export tons of chrysotile, also known as white asbestos, to developing countries, such as India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Korea and Japan.
Despite the known risks of exposure and also the knowledge that often developing countries do not provide training or protection of workers using asbestos, the Quebec government is considering providing a loan of just under $60 million as a guarantee of the project to convert and reopen the mine. Jean Charest, current Premier of Quebec, claims that they would require a guarantee that those receiving the asbestos would follow the rules of “safe use of chrysotile effective in Canada.”
The problem is there is no “safe” level of exposure and there is no way to guarantee that importing countries will use asbestos in a way that protects workers and the general public from exposure. In fact, the current reality of rising numbers of asbestos related diseases both in Canada and in other countries reveals that indeed importing countries will not protect and even with protections and warnings, deaths are on the rise.
Despite worldwide protests and 40 asbestos victims joint effort of a signed letter lobbying against the re-opening of the Jeffrey mine and continued export of the deadly mineral, Charest and others within Quebec continue to say that chrysotile can be mined and used safely. Renowned medical and scientific organizations that oppose the move include:
Despite the show of global unity, the Canadian government is still considering the proposal. One can only hope that the growing awareness and increased joint efforts to educate about the dangers and eradicate the use of asbestos worldwide will be sufficient to prevent the reopening of a mine that basically delivers a fatal poison.
This entry was posted on Thursday, December 30th, 2010 at 11:39 am and is filed under Asbestos. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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