The Canadian Cancer Society and the Canadian Medical Association are urging the creation of a national registry so that Canadians can easily find out if their homes, offices, children’s schools, community centres or other buildings they frequent were constructed using asbestos.
Media Links 2012
Last up dated December 21, 2012
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Disclaimer
We endeavour to provide links to beneficial information related to mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases. However, the links to stories in the media listed below are provided as resource information only; this is only a handful of asbestos-related media stories. We have not vetted information in these stories, nor do we endorse the opinions expressed. Please properly vet all information that you obtain online and read all website disclaimers. For any medical advice, consult your family physician or medical specialists.
The Canadian Red Cross on Friday rallied behind a board member who was criticized for having ties to the asbestos industry, calling the Montrealer a "valued member" of the team.
Anti-asbestos campaigners reacted by calling for the resignation of board president Ted Tanaka "for betraying asbestos victims and the very mission of the Red Cross."
The international trade union movement has been fighting for years for a global ban on asbestos so as to protect workers and populations, especially in Asia. As the trade union aid organisation says in the article below, they have to confront a particularly shameful enemy, Canada. That is to say, Jeffrey Mine Inc and LAB Chrysotile Inc in Quebec. Both companies are closed down and bankrupt, but hope to re-launch themselves and export millions of tons of asbestos to Asia, with financial and political help from their powerful political friends, PM Harper, Premier Charest and Industry Minister Christian Paradis.
Former miners who worked at asbestos mines at Roro, India, owned and run by Hyderabad Industry Limited, are dying in large numbers. Abhaya Shanker, who is managing director of Hyderabad Industries Limited and a powerful industrialist in India, says “It’s all bullshit.” Hyderabad Industries has for years been a prime client of the Quebec asbestos companies, Jeffrey Mine and LAB Chryostile. Shanker asserts that Quebec’s asbestos does not cause cancer.
Speaking of the people dying at Roro, environmental activist, Madhumita Dutta states: “This is damning evidence about their irresponsibility and it’s criminal negligence”.
With the help of aggressive media marketing, asbestos is the number one roofing material in the island . . . Contrary to the common belief that only workers handling asbestos are at risk, studies show that asbestos is carried through the air and inhaled by unsuspecting victims . . . Dr. Yakandawala said, “Sri Lankan hospitals do not have the facilities and doctors do not have the training to effectively diagnose asbestos related diseases – this is a major issue in this country”.
“This is a straight bankruptcy and the company is no longer financially viable in its present form,” CEO Simon Dupéré said. “I can’t discuss the financial details, but our ultimate goal is to restart operations under a new structure at the former production rate of 125,000 tonnes a year.”
The “miracle fibre” that helped drive Quebec's economy for more than a century now represents an industry near death, despite government efforts to keep it afloat . . . Proponents insist it has a glowing future in global markets, despite growing international pressure on the Canadian and Quebec governments to cease financial and political backing of the industry amid mounting evidence of asbestos’s health hazards.
Anti-asbestos activists in Canada are working hard to get the government to heed calls to eradicate Canada's asbestos mining and export industries. They're making some headway and urge more entities to get involved, including occupational health and safety professionals.
Interview with Stacy Cattran about Roshi Chadha, a Canadian Red Cross board member. Roshi Chadha is an active asbestos trader in her own right and although the last two asbestos mines in Canada are bankrupt and shutdown, Roshi and Baljit Chadha are trying to re-start it.
A Montrealer with ties to the asbestos industry has resigned abruptly from the governing body of the Canadian Red Cross after the humanitarian group rallied behind her as a "valued member" of its team. A second board member, Peter Robinson of the David Suzuki Foundation, also resigned over the weekend after the Red Cross expressed its support for Roshi Chadha on Friday.
The department of transportation tied up the spare ferry for the Islands in early January while contractors "covered up" asbestos on the boat. The Islands ferry service was without a back-up boat from Jan. 6 to Jan. 11 this year after a crew member raised questions about some material on board. Department spokesman Steve Smith says lab tests confirmed that samples from the Spray contained asbestos..
Most Canadians would be surprised to know that the Canadian government allows children’s toys to contain chrysotile asbestos, if the asbestos cannot become separated as a result of “a reasonably foreseeable use”.
QUESTION: What child do you know who always makes a “reasonably foreseeable use” of her/his toys?
The Canadian government also allows asbestos to be in clothing that provides protection from fire or heat, certain drywall products, and spraying products, even though all asbestos is carcinogenic.
Video Clip - Superb lead item on Montreal CBC News on how asbestos victims are challenging asbestos exporter Roshi Chadha and calling for her to be removed from the board of McGill University and St Mary’s Hospital, a teaching hospital affiliated with McGill.
The story is in the first few minutes of the half hour news show.
The owner of a company that exposed workers to asbestos during home demolitions has been sentenced to 60 days in jail for contempt of a court order. The sentence imposed on Arthur Moore of Surrey-based AM Environmental by B.C. Supreme Court Justice Richard Goepel came after Moore ignored a restraining order to stop putting workers as young as 14 at risk of exposure to the deadly substance.
A descendant of one of the earliest pioneers of Quebec’s storied asbestos industry has publicly joined the movement to stop Canadian production and export of the deadly mineral. Despite her family’s history, Henry has now put her name to a letter-writing campaign, launched by the David Suzuki Foundation in November, calling for an end to Canada’s involvement in the asbestos trade.
Researchers report that textile workers in North Carolina and South Carolina who were exposed to asbestos had significantly increased incidence of lung cancer.
Asbestos exporter Roshi Chadha announced Wednesday she is taking a leave of absence from her positions on McGill University’s board of governors and on the St. Mary’s Hospital Foundation’s board of directors, in response to pressure from anti-asbestos activists.
A major 40-year study on asbestos safety completed by a group of scientists at McGill University is flawed, lacks transparency and contains manipulated data says Dr. David Egilman, a professor at Brown University, health activist and longtime industry critic.
Roshi Chadha and Silvano Mossano have very different takes on the asbestos reality of the 21st century. Chadha, a Canadian asbestos promoter, is linked to an aggressive campaign to pour millions of tax dollars into the development of new asbestos mining resources in Quebec. Italian journalist Mossano, the wife of a man dying from asbestos cancer, is otherwise engaged; her professional career has been dominated by efforts to expose her country’s asbestos scandal.
Arthur Moore, a demolition contractor, repeatedly and intentionally exposed his employees to asbestos without their knowledge and without protection. He fraudulently completed forms and submitted false reports, certifying asbestos as not being present when it was. As a result, he will spend 60 days in prison but carry no criminal record. Moore’s light sentence and the lack of criminal charges in this case raise serious and troubling questions about workplace health and safety in BC, and about the value the law and the Crown places on the lives of workers..
The documentary “Fatal Deception” on CBC Television's The National on Thursday detailed how an institute set up by the Quebec Asbestos Mining Association paid professor John Corbett McDonald and other researchers at Montreal's McGill University at least $1 million between 1966 and 1972 for research on the health impacts of chrysotile asbestos. . . . The documentary suggests the questionable research is still being used by the industry and the federal and Quebec governments to justify Canada's continued involvement in asbestos production and export.
This documentary has generated significant interest in the asbestos issue and ties to the McGill community. These links will take you to a number of articles that followed on from the airing of the documentary:
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-McGill responds to charges it's in bed with asbestos industry Montreal Gazette Feb 3, 2012
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-Debating asbestos: critics pressuring McGill (video 2m18s) CBC News Feb 3, 2012
- Ties to asbestos industry prompt censure of McGill Montreal Gazette Feb 3, 2012
- McGill to conduct preliminary review The Gazette Feb 10, 2012
- Opposition to asbestos reaches ‘critical mass’ The Gazette Feb 10, 2012
- McGill may cause cancer The McGill Daily Feb 12, 2012
- Debate on asbestos marks Senate session McGill Reporter Feb 16, 2012
- McGill review of asbestos research criticized McGill Daily Feb 18, 2012
Documentary: “Fatal Deception” and Continued Fallout February, 2012
The Occupational & Environmental Health Network of India (OEHNI) urged the Prime Minister to urgently ban use of Asbestos products in India. The letter follows an online petition launched seeking opinions from across the world. The petition has been signed by hundreds of individuals from across the globe.
The Quebec government continues to favour a relaunch of the asbestos industry – despite a storm of recent controversy, including groundbreaking criminal convictions of two European businessmen for causing thousands of asbestos-related deaths, and far-reaching concerns about the research upon which the province bases its pro-asbestos policy.
An Ontario woman whose husband died due to a painful asbestos-related illness brought her crusade against the mined mineral to Ottawa on Thursday. Margaret Buist, 73, of Sarnia, has launched a postcard campaign to urge federal and provincial leaders to stop "promoting" the production of crysotile asbestos.
Here’s the run-down on how Canada got the job done to keep chrysotile asbestos (mined in Quebec and exported to India and other developing countries) off Annex III. Such a listing requires “Prior Informed Consent” before countries can export it, meaning importing countries are informed of the hazards and can refuse it if they believe they can’t handle it safety. Consensus is needed for any listing, so any one country party to the convention can stymie a listing.
Lisette Lapointe, wife of former Parti Québécois premier Jacques Parizeau, who now sits in the Quebec legislature as an independent, used her lack of party ties Thursday to present a motion calling on the province to withdraw its offer to finance the reopening of Quebec’s only remaining asbestos mine. . . “They refused to support our motion.”
In Turin, Italy, a criminal court issued its guilty verdict in the criminal trial of Stephan Schmidheiny and Belgian baron Louis de Cartier for creating an environmental disaster that has claimed over 3,000 lives. The prosecutor had asked the 3-judge panel to sentence the defendants to 20 years each in jail - they got 16 years each instead.
This trial has generated significant media interest around the globe. These links will take you to a number of articles that followed the guilty verdict:
- Italian court convicts 2 in asbestos-linked deaths Business Week Feb 13
- Guilty Verdict in First Ever Criminal Trial of Asbestos Magnate NRDC Switchboard Blog Feb 13
- Canadian asbestos industry reacts to conviction of European execs Winnipeg Free Press Feb 13
- Martin condemns asbestos proponents to face justice in hell CBC News Feb 14
Guilty Verdict in Precedent Setting Asbestos Criminal Trial February 2012
There are many public buildings across Canada that have building products contain asbestos. That means millions of Canadians are in government owned buildings that are filled with the toxic substance. There is now a push for government to establish a Canadian Asbestos Registry.
- Asbestos registry needed, says cancer patient Howard Willems, Saskatoon CBC News Feb 28, 2012
Call for Canadian Asbestos Registry February 2012
A leading industry player says the estimate by the WHO, the United Nations health authority, is an exaggeration based on unfounded evidence. . . A senior official for the WHO says the organization stands by its estimate that asbestos-related diseases – such as certain forms of lung cancer – kill more than 107,000 people around the world each year. Ivan Ivanov says that estimate is based on data from published scientific research.
Canada is cited as one of the major exporters of asbestos — along with Russia and China — to Vietnam. WikiLeaks cable says health and safety standards inadequate to protect Vietnamese workers.
Laurie Kazan-Allen, the coordinator of the International Ban Asbestos Secretariat, says asbestos should not be used in places like Vietnam because they are prone to earthquakes and tsunamis.
A network of shoddy, dangerous contractors and consultants continue to unsafely remove asbestos and put workers at risk, according to WorkSafeBC. The agency estimates 300 homes are demolished each month in the Lower Mainland and many built prior to the mid-1990s contain asbestos. Those violators remain a major priority because disease from asbestos exposure has become a major source of workplace fatalities.
Opposition politician Amir Khadir said Friday that a credible source has told him that financial institutions refused to provide a critical loan to the company trying to relaunch Quebec's Jeffrey Mine. . . . the public-relations battle has been devastating for the industry, Coulombe admitted in a recent interview with The Canadian Press.
Residents in the northern Manitoba town of Gillam are demanding answers after tonnes of debris from Northern Ontario containing asbestos arrived to be buried in their town dump. The sizable bags of waste -- some which appear ripped or torn -- have tags warning the material contains asbestos and is dangerous due to the cancer and lung disease hazard it could pose..
It's an unlikely match, but a green chemistry institute is thriving in the old headquarters of a Canadian mine in a sign that the former world capital of asbestos is diversifying. . . Despite the success of its economic diversification and the risks associated with asbestos, Thetford Mines officials are adamant about relaunching the Lake Asbestos Mine, which once employed 350 workers.
“The Canadian Cancer Society urges the government to divulge all the information on buildings containing asbestos, homes, public offices, and schools,” Demers, Director of Public Issues of the Canadian Cancer Society, says. “So far, we’re disappointed because the government has not yet provided Canadians with this information to determine if they, their families, or work colleagues, have been exposed.”.
There have been some suspect Canadian mining ventures over the years. But none were probably as sketchy — or as unhealthy — as this one.
The provincial government of Quebec is doggedly trying to lure investors to reopen the Jeffrey Mine in lovely, pitted, Asbestos, Quebec. It was closed last year for financial reasons after a cave-in. Quebec’s leader has been trying to find money to kick-start the mine for over a year, in fact. So far, investors have stayed away.
Students at the University of Calgary expressed fears about the state of their classrooms after the school said it received complaints related to asbestos removal. The university conducted air quality testing in Craigie Hall last week after the CBC reported on the death of Amelia Labbe, an employee with the Spanish centre who died of pulmonary fibrosis in November.
The head of Quebec’s public health institute says its recent recommendations to improve public safety regarding exposure to asbestos are based on science, and its scientists are not biased against chrysotile asbestos as an industry representative claims.
Most mechanics contacted by CBC News believed that asbestos was already banned from brake pads years ago. But figures from Statistics Canada show that more than $2.6 million worth of asbestos brake pads entered the country in 2011. An Ontario MPP will table a bill this week that if passed would be the first in Canada to block imports of asbestos brake pads from entering the Canadian market.
- Asbestos in brakes: One community's struggle
Asbestos in Brake Pads Causes a Deadly Environment for Mechanics CBC News Mar 20, 2012
Toronto’s Princess Margaret Hospital has a screening program that utilizes CT scans to monitor the lung health of workers who have been exposed to asbestos. The tiny fibres get lodged in the lungs causing deadly diseases that typically take 20 to 40 years to show up. It is the only screening program of its kind in North America; they are looking for mesothelioma a painful, terminal cancer that forms in the lining of the lungs. The deadly damage caused by asbestos has not yet peaked; there are about 400 new cases of mesothelioma diagnosed in Canada every year.
McGill professor Bruce Case has vowed that the CBC will face “consequences” for how he was depicted in a documentary on the University’s ties to the asbestos industry broadcast last month. In an interview with The Daily, Case accused the CBC of “deliberate misrepresentation and bias.” “And, believe me, there will be consequences,” he said.
Canada doesn't have current numbers. Researchers at CAREX Canada are trying to put together the pieces. By linking exposure to carcinogens in various industries, the B.C.-based research initiative is flagging which employees might be at risk.
Rev. Michel Dubord, rector at St. John the Baptist Anglican Church in Richmond, has undertaken on his own to hold a series of silent vigils protesting Canada's policy to export asbestos. These silent vigils will be happening every Wednesday in April from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Memorial Park at the corner of Perth Street and McBean Street in Richmond. Everyone concerned about this issue is encouraged to attend these silent vigils of protest.
FLSmidth, a global engineering firm based in Copenhagen, is being accused of the deaths of hundreds of Cypriot miners who worked at an asbestos mine the company used to own and run, Copenhagen Post reported. The relatives of those who have died are now threatening to sue FLSmidth for allowing the miners to work without any protection in full knowledge that asbestos can be lethal to breathe in.
Four insurance companies have been fighting to minimise payouts to 6,000 families who have a member who has died or is suffering from mesothelioma, a cancer resulting from exposure to asbestos. Once the court rules against the insurers, the compensation bill could be in excess of £600m. If you include future claims that will be brought, up to 25,000 families could be affected by the ruling, pushing the potential bill to £5bn.
The two remaining asbestos mines in Quebec have been shut down since last fall. A Canadian investor is trying to raise $25 million to re-open it.
Listen to this excellent interview with anti-asbestos activist Kathleen Ruff. She explains Canada’s role in the asbestos industry and the responsibility that all Canadians have to prevent future mining and exporting of this deadly mineral.
PARIS — Already facing heightened risks of cancer, asbestos workers also run a greater danger of heart disease and stroke, a British study published on Tuesday said.
Researchers looked into more than 15,000 deaths that occurred among nearly 99,000 workers in the British asbestos industry between 1971 and 2005.
Asia is heading for a huge jump in asbestos-related diseases in the coming decades, according to numerous scientific studies and two of the world’s most prominent experts on public health and asbestos exposure. Not surprisingly, the consequences are expected to be felt most severely in India and China, two emerging economies and most populous countries in the world.
The head of Jeffrey mine is denying rumours that the layoff of 50 workers for the month of April is being caused by potential investors backing out.
Even though asbestos is banned in over 50 countries, Canada continues to block international efforts to control its use, financially supporting asbestos industry spin doctors, and promoting the continued trade of this toxic, cancer-causing, substance to the developing world — despite it being effectively banned in Canada. Managing editor David Donovan reports on a nation that has become an international pariah through what some have described as its “racist” double-standards.
If you want an excellent (albeit rather lengthy) summary of Canada’s involvement in the asbestos industry, you have to check out this. It has lots of excellent links and video clips.
At CFUW’s 2010 AGM we adopted a policy resolution calling on the Government of Canada to ban the mining, use and export of chrysotile asbestos. Despite several attempts on the part of CFUW National, and many leading health associations, the Government of Canada has not yet been persuaded to ban asbestos.
The effects of long years of exposure to asbestos is still one of the biggest challenges faced by British Columbia’s workers today, and it is expected to continue to be a problem in this decade.
This was according to Donna Wilson, vice-president for industrial service and sustainability for WorkSafeBC, the province’s workers’ compensation board
Founders of “A Walk to Remember the Victims of Asbestos” call for a public inquiry into the purposeful misinformation campaign and industry cover-ups that have led to the deaths of thousands of Canadians from asbestos.
A Walk to Remember Victims of Asbestos, September 29, 2012 in Sarnia, Ontario
An organization dedicated to raising awareness about issues surrounding asbestos is planning a first annual walk. Walk for Truth—Asbestos Kills 2012 will take place on Sunday, June 10 in Powell River. The AREA (Asbestos-related Research, Education and Advocacy) Fund is hosting the event to honour asbestos victims and to raise awareness of the asbestos issue..
2012 Walk for Truth—Asbestos Kills will take place Sunday, June 10 in Powell River, BC
Stacey Cattran wants the federal government to launch an inquiry into asbestos deaths in Canada, but she’s not expecting the Conservative government to agree. . . . Public inquiries are notoriously expensive. Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, which met from August 1991 to November 1996 - the longest royal commission ever - spent a staggering $60 million of public money. Cattran knows that is a draw back to the public but she says the federal government could use the money it now spends on supporting and promoting the industry.
The Canadian Labour Congress welcomes news that the Chrysotile Institute, a pro-asbestos lobby group, that has received funding from the federal and Quebec governments, will dissolve and cease operation. . . overwhelming expert evidence indicates that asbestos is a well-known carcinogen and that no safe use exists. Canada is a major producer of asbestos and all of this country’s exports go to developing countries, including Bangladesh, India and Indonesia. This consumption will lead to a pandemic of asbestos related diseases in developing countries.
A group of ailing, former shipyard workers in Marystown, Newfoundland and Labrador is taking on the provincial government over asbestos. The town has a proud history of fishing and shipbuilding, but nearly 60 people there have already died or are dying from asbestos-related cancer. While some have been compensated — many have not, and they're afraid they'll die before they see any money.
A decades-old pro-asbestos lobby group, currently funded by the Quebec government, will be shutting its doors after notifying the federal government of its plan to dissolve. . . . “I see it as a real tipping point in the movement to get Canada out of the asbestos industry,” Pat Martin said. “It’s just another demonstration of the death rattle of the asbestos industry in this country.”
For the first time in National Magazine Awards history, a single article has been nominated in 5 different categories: "Where Asbestos is Just a Fact of Life" by John Gray and Stephanie Nolan (Report on Business) is nominated in the categories Politics & Public Interest, Business, Health & Medicine, Investigative Reporting, and Science, Technology & the Environment.
Rev. Dubord, while rector at St. John the Baptist Anglican Church in Richmond, has undertaken this protest campaign on his own, holding a series of silent vigils first in Richmond and now in Stittsville. He views the campaign as a personal matter of advocacy, not particularly associated with his parish although the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa is taking steps to raise its concerns against the export of asbestos by Canada.
Half a century after the first wave of lawsuits were filed for illnesses linked to exposure to asbestos and 40 years after new regulation sharply curtailed use of the insulating and fire-resistant mineral, the asbestos-litigation business is booming. . . . Meanwhile, the dozens of trusts set up by companies forced into bankruptcy by asbestos liabilities are facing such heavy claims that many are paying only a few cents on the dollar. Some have had to suspend settlements. That has created inequality among victims.
HRiel, now retired from GE and a city councillor, isn’t surprised that in the years since the WSIB has paid out on more than 100 claims from GE workers and their survivors. He told The Examiner he thought the number should be higher. “Hopefully the people, and widows, are getting what they deserve,” Riel said. Aileen Hughes can only shake her head about the scope of the illnesses. Hughes’s husband, Morris, died from mesothelioma in September 2003.
The documentary “Fatal Deception” on CBC Television's The National on February 12 detailed how an institute set up by the Quebec Asbestos Mining Association paid professor John Corbett McDonald and other researchers at Montreal's McGill University at least $1 million between 1966 and 1972 for research on the health impacts of chrysotile asbestos. . . . The documentary suggests the questionable research is still being used by the industry and the federal and Quebec governments to justify Canada's continued involvement in asbestos production and export.
These links will take you to a number of articles from recent months:
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-McGill’s Conclusion on its Ties to Asbestos Industry: Historian’s Response ActiveHistory.ca May 16
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-It’s time for McGill to stop colluding with the asbestos industry Prevent Cancer Now May 14
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-Internal review on asbestos research is inconclusive The McGill Tribune Apr 4
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-Asbestos Review Lacks Required Records The McGill Daily Apr 4
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-Prelim review of retired prof McDonald's ties to asbestos industry inconclusive The Gazette Apr 3
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-McGill University: Evidence of asbestos industry influence RightOnCanada Apr 3
Continued Fallout from CBC’s February 2012 Documentary: “Fatal Deception”
The federal government says it doesn't actively keep track of projects to remove asbestos from infrastructure, despite owning 318 buildings that contain the cancer-causing substance, according to a recently compiled list from Public Works and Government Services Canada. More than one-third of the buildings are in the Ottawa-Gatineau region, but the locations listed span the country from coast to coast to coast.
A project to set up a registry of workers exposed to asbestos at a Baie Verte Peninsula mine — which some miners and their union hope will ultimately lead to more former workers receiving compensation — is long overdue. Gathering the miners' health information began in 2008. At the time, it was expected to take a year and a half.
Tenants at a once-affordable Vancouver Eastside apartment building are concerned their asbestos-ridden building is being renovated without any protection for residents. Shane Simpson, the New Democrat MLA for Vancouver-Hastings, noted that the building was found to be riddled with asbestos “in every sample” tested after a 2009 fire.
While considerable attention has been paid to the efforts of Montreal businessman, Baljit Singh Chadha, to open the underground Jeffrey asbestos mine in the town of Asbestos, less attention has been paid to plans to re-open the mine operated by LAB Chrysotile at Thetford Mines. Simon Dupéré, the president of LAB Chrysotile, stated, however, when filing for bankruptcy, that the bankruptcy declaration was part of a plan to re-launch the mine.
The tactics used by the tobacco industry to pervert scientific information and to sabotage efforts to protect public health have been copied by the asbestos industry and other industries. Many thousands of lives have been lost as a consequence. This practice continues to this day.
- Requirement that McGill’s involvement be kept secret
- International Call for Action to Stop Intimidation of Scientists by the Asbestos Industry
Asbestos Lobby Follows Footsteps of Tobacco Lobby - Lies/Deception RightOnCanada May 2012
While considerable attention has been paid to the efforts of Montreal businessman, Baljit Singh Chadha, to open the underground Jeffrey asbestos mine in the town of Asbestos, less attention has been paid to plans to re-open the mine operated by LAB Chrysotile at Thetford Mines. Simon Dupéré, the president of LAB Chrysotile, stated, however, when filing for bankruptcy, that the bankruptcy declaration was part of a plan to re-launch the mine.
Certain business operators are denying the widely known fact that all forms of asbestos are dangerous, claiming chrysotile, or white asbestos, is safe, the World Health Organisation said. Dr Birmingham said about 107,000 people around the world die from asbestos-related diseases each year. Inhaling asbestos fibres can cause lung cancer or mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the chest and the abdominal cavity.
It all began as a personal crusade by Rev. Michel Dubord of St. John's Anglican Church in Richmond, protesting the export of asbestos from Canada to developing countries. In April, Rev. Dubord held weekly one-hour silent protests at Memorial Park in Richmond, joined by several others as they stood beside a giant sign objecting to Canada's export of asbestos. But last Wednesday, May 30, saw an international aspect develop as a reporter and photographer from Der Spiegel, a German weekly news magazine which has a circulation of over one million.
A Walk for Truth-Asbestos Kills attracted over 100 participants as well as 30 people from out of town who attended the event on Sunday, June 10. The walk was organized by the AREA Fund, an organization that was created by the Ford family after Dave Ford, a Powell River resident who worked at the paper mill, died from mesothelioma, a terminal form of cancer caused by asbestos in the lining of the lungs.
Guest speaker Winnipeg MP Pat Martin, who actively campaigns to have Canada ban the production and exporting of asbestos, said Canada’s position on asbestos is morally and ethically reprehensible. “I love my country, but I hang my head in shame that we are the world’s number one cheerleader for the asbestos cartel and that asbestos is not banned in this country. We are actively exporting it, as much as 200,000 tons a year into unsuspecting, developing nations and third world countries.”
A few months before Premier Jean Charest’s cabinet approved a $58-million loan to restart the asbestos industry, Quebec’s health minister wrote that asbestos, tanning salons and cigarettes are all considered in the same category of “highest cancer risk to humans.”
Asbestos-laced materials used in the construction of the Algo Centre Mall in Elliot Lake, Ont. could have been dispersed through the air after a parking deck crashed through the building and killed two women on June 23.
Residents of a village in Sambalpur district who have been fighting the setting up of an asbestos plant in their neighbourhood emerged victorious on July 12 when the additional district magistrate approved their decision to cancel the no objection certificate (NOC) given to the plant two years ago.
Despite grave warnings, put forward by a variety of cancer, public health, and regulatory agencies, regarding the health hazards of all types of asbestos, controversy continues to be fomented by powerful moneyed interests. This has permitted some countries to promote continued use of asbestos. The JPC-SE therefore undertook the development of a Position Statement that, for the first time, puts forward, from an epidemiologic perspective, the clear evidence confirming that all forms of asbestos should be banned.
A Belgian activist who lost his parents and brothers to disease caused by asbestos mined in Canada will speak at this year’s Walk to Remember Victims of Asbestos in Sarnia. “He lost his father, his mother and two brothers to mesothelioma or asbestos-related disease,” Cattran said. “And, he has asbestos in his lungs.” Hearing of the plan to reopen the mine convinced Jonckheere to accept the invitation to the walk,
Nearly all the mine’s clients are developing countries, with Thailand, India and China representing the core of its business, and the core of its funding. La Presse is now reporting that Thai authorities are actively trying to ban chrysotile asbestos imports within the next few months.
The Quebec government’s decision to step in and finance the opening of the Jeffrey underground mine, after the asbestos investors failed to get any financial institution willing to invest in the project, has caused outrage. Here are some recent articles regarding this decision:
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-Yes Mr. Baljit Chada you are exporting death to India - and shame on you! Asian Journal, August 3
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-Canada's asbestos policy shameful, say epidemiologists Radio Canada International, July 30
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-Asbestos opposition growing in Thailand, warns advocate CBC News, July 23
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-Calls for Canada to ban asbestos exports to India Australian Broadcasting Corp., July 19
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-New Asbestos Mine in Canada-Business or Shameful Profiteering! Asia Ban Asbestos Network, July 5
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-Quebec and Canada keep deadly asbestos industry alive David Suzuki, July 17
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-Asbestos subsidies: Canada's shame HazMat Management, July 16
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-What the hell are cowardly South Asian MPs doing about it? Asian Journal, July 6
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-Fraser Institute argues against asbestos mine bailout Stock Watch, July 13
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-Labor group chides Canada for funding asbestos mine UCA News Philippines, July 13
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-Shame on politicians for asbestos mining support Sarnia Observer, July 10
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-Kicking up some dust over Quebec’s Asbestos loan Globe and Mail, July 9
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-Chris Selley’s Full Pundit: The great Canadian sellout to Quebec National Post, July 9
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-Christopher Nardi: Jean Charest’s asbestos loan is electioneering at its best National Post, July 9
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-Asbestos mine loan gives Charest ‘good reason to be ashamed‘ Globe and Mail, July 3
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-Quebec asbestos loan throws health threats to the wind National Post, July 3
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-Quebec shouldn’t depend on asbestos exports for jobs Toronto Star, July 3
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-Is Canada ready to take the asbestos test? The Globe and Mail, July 6
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-Quebec Government Gives Loan Guarantee to Asbestos Mine Canadian Cancer Society, June 29
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-Quebec should let the asbestos industry die Globe and Mail, July 4
Outrage Over Quebec Government Loan Guarantee to Asbestos Mine Summer 2012
In the month following the June 29 announcement that Quebec would loan $58 million to help reopen and expand the Jeffrey Mine in the town of Asbestos, newspapers across Quebec and Canada have run editorials and columns condemning the decision. The wisdom of staking public money on this project has come under question, and last week an international scientific organization of epidemiologists joined the call for a global ban on asbestos.
Annie Thebaud-Mony, director of research at France's National Institute for Health and Medical Research, turned down the "Legion d'Honneur" (France's highest honour) in protest at official inaction over what she described as "industrial crimes" in this sector.In her letter, she said she wanted to "challenge the impunity that until now has protected those who carry out industrial crimes".
“There will be no more exports of asbestos by Quebec from the Jeffrey Mine or elsewhere,” Legault underlined.
“We can’t let people die to save a job. There are limits.”
Weeks after the Liberals re-launched Quebec's asbestos industry with a $58 million loan to the Jeffrey Mine, the Coalition Avenir Quebec vowed to put an end to the "morally and scientifically indefensible" product.
Legault told reporters on Saturday that if elected, the CAQ wouldn't cancel the $58 million loan, but would phase out the exportation of asbestos altogether. "(Asbestos) does not conform to the values of Quebecers," Legault said. "We have to turn the page."
It seems every day a new bomb drops, showing the utter insanity of the plan to revive Quebec’s bankrupt asbestos industry — a plan Premier Jean Charest and Prime Minister Stephen Harper doggedly support.
The project to revive the Jeffrey mine at Asbestos, Que., has been condemned as medically indefensible by Quebec government health authorities, the Canadian Cancer Society and the Quebec Medical Association.
Not only is the project a health disaster, however; it is also a financial calamity.
Less than two months after the Quebec government gave Jeffrey mine a $58 million loan, the mine has encountered a severe financial crisis and has laid off about 80 if its one hundred workers. Employees and residents of Asbestos are greatly concerned by the lay-off.
NO decent Quebecer should vote for the Liberal Party in the September 4 provincial election because Premier Jean Charest has disgraced himself by providing a loan of $58 million to reopen the province’s asbestos mine. And like the typical OPPORTUNISTIC politician, Charest did that ONLY for votes as he knew he was soon going to call an election. It didn’t matter how IMMORAL that policy was.
A group of international health organizations is calling on Canada and other asbestos-producing countries to stop mining and exporting the hazardous material commonly used in construction and manufacturing.
The position statement was issued in late July by the Joint Policy Committee of the Societies of Epidemiology, a consortium of international epidemiology organizations including the Canadian Society for Epidemiology and Biostatistics and the American College of Epidemiology. More than 180 individuals and public health groups from 21 countries have endorsed the statement.
Epidemiologists state that although the scientific evidence is overwhelming that all use of asbestos should stop, the asbestos industry denies the science and uses its political influence, particularly in Brazil, Canada, India, Kazakhstan, and Russia, to defeat efforts by public health officials to end the use of asbestos. The position statement notes how, when health professionals in developing countries seek to implement a ban on asbestos, the global asbestos lobby intervenes to crush their efforts.
Parti Québécois joins CAQ and Québec Solidaire in calling for end to industry. The Parti Québécois announced Tuesday night and repeated Wednesday that if elected, it would kibosh a $58-million loan from the provincial government to the Jeffrey asbestos mine in Quebec's Eastern Townships. Without the loan, the asbestos company — the last in Canada — won't be able to restart production, which has been mostly dormant since 2010.
Parti Québécois leader Pauline Marois has previously stated that if elected her government would cancel Jean Charest’s $58-million loan to the Jeffrey asbestos mine, effectively ending the mining and export of this toxic and deadly industry in Canada.
The call came at the end of the UICC’s World Cancer Congress, held in Montreal, Quebec from August 27 to 30, when the UICC, for the first time, passed a motion in support of a global ban on asbestos and for transition assistance to be provided to asbestos-mining communities. The UICC comprises more than 700 member organisations in 155 countries.
Pauline Marois has made it clear she intends to end asbestos mining in the province.
Anti-asbestos advocates plan to hold the newly-elected Parti Québécois government to its promise to cancel the $58-million government loan to the Jeffrey Mine and put an end to this province’s long history of production and export of the deadly fibre.
It’s one thing to allow the continued export of asbestos from Canada to countries such as India. It’s another for governments to actively work to keep that industry alive, as the federal government has done with its rogue international stance on the question of whether it should be listed as a dangerous substance. The Quebec government, under now-defeated premier Jean Charest, actually helped to revive the industry by providing a $58-million government loan to reopen the Jeffrey Mine. All for the sake of a few hundred jobs.
The Marois government might find it difficult to extricate itself from its predecessor’s commitment to the mine. But its public stand against the subsidy is laudable.
In an extraordinary and dramatic turn of events, the Canadian government today announced that it will no longer oppose the listing of chrysotile asbestos as a hazardous substance under the Rotterdam Convention. Prime Minister Harper is notorious for his dictatorial style of government. He has rarely backed down on any issue. It is a true victory that Harper has been forced to drop his government’s opposition to listing chrysotile asbestos under the Rotterdam Convention.
Former workers at the now defunct Cassiar asbestos mine just south of the Yukon/B.C. border are being urged to watch for signs of cancer. The mine operated for about 40 years and an estimated 50,000 people worked there, including many Yukoners. It closed in the 1990s. Mineworkers at Cassiar handled raw asbestos without any protective gear. Asbestos fibres can lodge in the lungs and cause respiratory ailments and cancer decades later.
If political strategists have any capacity for introspection, they should be asking themselves some serious questions about the Parti Québécois’ late-innings promise to cancel a $58-million government loan to the Jeffrey Mine in the Estrie, and to end all exports of chrysotile asbestos from Quebec.
Workers suffering from illnesses caused by on-the-job asbestos exposure will soon be eligible to receive diagnostic CT scans funded by WorkSafeBC in an effort to diagnose lung cancer sooner and reduce mortality from the disease.
It has long been an article of faith that the Canadian government, regardless of which party was in power, would defend the asbestos industry in the province of Quebec. That changed on September 14th, when the federal industry minister, Christian Paradis, said Canada would no longer block the inclusion of chrysotile on the Rotterdam Convention’s list. It is hugely symbolic within Canada, especially as it was accompanied by a promise to spend C$50m ($51m) in federal funds to help the towns of Thetford Mines and Asbestos diversify their economies. This was a clear signal to the two remaining mines, which are both closed, that the federal government can no longer be counted on for support.
Let us hope that, with the support and financing of the Quebec and Canadian governments, there will be a successful transition to sustainable, healthy economic development in the area, so that the town will not only survive but thrive.
“Canada has a moral obligation, backed by well-grounded evidence, to close down this [industry] and stop exporting a potentially hazardous material to countries that are ill-equipped to protect the health of workers who handle asbestos fibres,” said Erica Di Ruggiero, chair of the Canadian Public Health Association.
Canada's dying asbestos industry was dealt another blow Friday from one of its former friends, with Industry Minister Christian Paradis announcing that the federal government will no longer oppose global rules that restrict use and shipment of the substance. Paradis also said Ottawa will invest up to $50 million to help the country's last remaining asbestos mining region, in Quebec's Eastern Townships, to diversify into other areas of activity.
On the heels of Quebec’s new government rejecting the province’s profitable yet controversial export of asbestos, Ottawa will no longer veto the global push to list the chrysotile form of the silicate mineral as a hazardous material. With the Parti Quebecois (PQ) elected earlier in September 2012, it immediately cancelled a $58-million loan promised by the previous Liberal provincial government, which would have reopened Canada’s last asbestos mine in Quebec’s Eastern Townships.
The company planning to reopen Quebec’s only asbestos mine says Ottawa’s decision to stop opposing the addition of asbestos to an international hazardous-substances list will not stop the mine’s relaunch next spring. And despite a promise by the Parti Québécois to cancel a $58-million loan to reopen the Jeffrey Mine in Asbestos, a company spokesperson said work to prepare the mine to reopen is continuing.
Asbestos has become a mineral with a dubious reputation and a doubtful future, and its namesake town faces a similar fate. Medical experts link asbestos to cancer. Countries worldwide ban it and Canadians rip it out of their walls. And now, in the space of less than four weeks, formerly staunch political allies in Ottawa and Quebec City have abruptly jettisoned their support for the asbestos industry.
Despite recent announcements in Ottawa and Quebec that suggest asbestos will soon be a thing of the past, products made of the cancer-causing mineral are still being imported and used in Ontario today. While the carcinogenic insulation is now being removed from buildings across the province, two new products that contain asbestos — brake pads and cement pipes — are being brought in. Statistics Canada reports that $2.6 million worth of asbestos-containing brake pads were imported into Canada last year. Of that, more than half arrived in Ontario.
Activists celebrated recently when a newly-elected provincial government in Quebec pledged to withdraw a loan aimed at restarting an asbestos mine there but Cattran told the crowd at Saturday’s walk that the fight isn’t finished.
She repeated the sisters’ call for a public inquiry into Canada’s role as a supporter of the asbestos industry.
WSO President Prem Singh Vinning wrote in his letter to Minister Paradis,
“We know and accept that the use of asbestos is dangerous to Canadians. We must now stop the export of this material to developing states where uninformed workers are being subjected to prolonged exposure leading to illness and death. It is also incumbent on us to provide support to those individuals and families who are either afflicted by asbestos-related cancer or have lost a family member due to asbestos exposure. The continued export of asbestos is not in the spirit of our Canadian values and is morally unjustifiable.”
Williams’ novel is a very timely book. It will stand as a good example of the potential of Canadian social justice literature to reach new audiences. Yet it is, first and foremost, more of a grim reminder of the shameful conduct of the asbestos mine owners and the continuing health risks facing the former workers.
Hundreds of former B.C. asbestos miners now live in fear of becoming victims of that deadly asbestos dust. It’s still a headline-grabbing story in BC where most of the mines were (and are) located here in Canada.
McGill University has cleared one of its former professors of wrongdoing, saying the scientist did not collude with the asbestos industry or doctor any data in decades of research into the safety of the substance. Even though the studies were partly funded by the Quebec Asbestos Mining Association, from which McDonald and other researchers at the McGill School of Occupational Health received payments totalling almost a million dollars from 1966 to 1972.
On Tuesday, October 16, the president of LAB Chrysotile, announced that it was indefinitely suspending its plans to recommence asbestos mining.The mayor of Thetford Mines, Luc Berthold, said this decision was very sad news, but that he was not surprised, as with the climate created by the Quebec government, he did not see how it would be possible to convince foreign investors to invest tens of millions of dollars in a project to re-start asbestos mining at Thetford Mines.
On Tuesday, October 16, the president of LAB Chrysotile, announced that it was indefinitely suspending its plans to recommence asbestos mining.The mayor of Thetford Mines, Luc Berthold, said this decision was very sad news, but that he was not surprised, as with the climate created by the Quebec government, he did not see how it would be possible to convince foreign investors to invest tens of millions of dollars in a project to re-start asbestos mining at Thetford Mines.
The majority of Canadians - 82% - are sending a clear message that a public registry of buildings containing asbestos, including private homes, is important and 78% say it's the responsibility of the federal government to create one, according to poll results released today by the Canadian Cancer Society.
Please check out the links below for excellent information on the International Ban Asbestos Secretariat website regarding the following:
- The 1991 overturning of the US ban on asbestos as a result of a litigation brought by asbestos industry stakeholders (including key original documentation which reveals how vested interests defeated a government agency trying to protect U.S. citizens). A Bloody Anniversary
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-The October 2012 key meeting of ban asbestos activists in Brussels and the series of events in Paris which brought together ban asbestos activists from 20 countries. Storming the Asbestos Barricades
1991 US fails to ban asbestos; 2012 Europe pushes for global ban IBAS October, 2012
The investigation into misconduct charges aimed at a former McGill University professor’s asbestos research was biased and a “whitewash,” a group of doctors and anti-asbestos activists say. McGill’s report, released last Wednesday, cleared retired Professor John Corbett McDonald of allegations of misconduct related to his research on into the health of Quebec asbestos workers.
“When the McGill report says that McDonald’s research was robust and has been replicated by other scientists, and there is much controversy in the world about the safety of chrysotile asbestos, that’s just patently wrong,” said Dr. Colin Soskolne, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Alberta’s School of Public Health, and one of four doctors to publicly criticize the report.
Over the past century, Canada has been one of the biggest exporters of asbestos in the world. In addition to exporting a deadly product, Canada also exported deadly misinformation. Canada has been at the heart of the global asbestos propaganda machine.
The asbestos industry in Canada has suffered enormous blows. Thanks to collaboration between scientists, activists and victims, in Quebec, across Canada and around the world, we have, we hope, forced an end of Canada’s shameful export of asbestos and asbestos lies.
Last week, the McGill community, learned that an internal report prepared by Doctor Abraham Fuks, the Research Integrity Officer at McGill, found no evidence of misconduct on the part of retired McGill researcher John Corbett Macdonald and his corporate-sponsored research on asbestos. McGill has effectively stifled the possibility an independent, external investigation. We will never know the true extent of Macdonald’s fraud. What we do know, however, is that the repercussions of privatized research at McGill are a pressing reality that must be dealt with.
A report released Sept. 23 by the university concluded that John Corbett McDonald, a professor who retired from McGill in the late 1980s, had not been influenced in his research on the effects of asbestos, despite having received funding from the industry itself.
Willems worked as a building inspector for 31 years. Last week he said in media interviews that people should know if they’re going into buildings that have asbestos — especially if there is construction work. Willems spoke out as the Opposition NDP introduced a private member’s bill in the Saskatchewan legislature that would require that details about asbestos containment in public buildings be listed online.
Martine Aubry, the former leader of France’s governing Socialist Party, has been charged with manslaughter in a probe into whether state negligence contributed to thousands of deaths caused by asbestos exposure. The charges against Aubry relate to her time as a senior official in the ministry of social affairs, before she became a major figure in French politics. She is accused of having helped to delay the implementation in France of a 1983 European Union directive designed to strengthen the protection of workers dealing with asbestos.
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Asbestos can cause cancer and other diseases but isn't harmful unless disturbed. It was used widely across the country from the 1920's to the 1990's. But the Canadian Cancer Society says people aren't aware of the potential dangers. The Canadian Cancer Society and the Canadian Medical Association want to see a national public registry of buildings containing asbestos.
City of Powell River staff are developing a policy that will prohibit the issuance of permits for renovations or demolitions without a hazardous materials assessment. The policy is designed to protect property owners and building trade contractors from exposure to hazardous materials in buildings constructed prior to 1990. After a lengthy discussion, councillors decided to direct staff to prepare a policy for handling hazardous waste and also to prepare a resolution about the province’s responsibility in the issue to present at the UBCM convention.
Despite some earlier misgivings, the Saskatchewan government has decided to publish a list of buildings containing asbestos. It's something the New Democrat Opposition was pushing for, as was Saskatoon's Howard Willems, who died last week of lung cancer.
NASA considering new use for Quebec mine. Quebec's Jeffrey Mine hosted nearly two-dozen scientists recently for a simulated Mars mission initiated by Canada's space agency. The goal of the project was to simulate as closely as possible a Mars rover mission to detect the presence of, and determine the source of, methane on Mars.
The past few months have been a dramatic roller coaster ride in the battle to stop the revival of Canada’s asbestos industry. If there is a lesson to be learned, it is NEVER to give up hope and NEVER to stop fighting for health and justice, even when the battle seems lost!
Stopping the revival of the asbestos industry in Quebec; it truly seems that this battle has been won. Yet more remains to be done.
TWENTY-THREE health leaders of Quebec and a health institution have congratulated Quebec Premier Pauline Marois for cancelling the $58 million loan to the province’s asbestos mine.
The Canadian Cancer Society says Saskatchewan’s move to make public a registry of government buildings that contain asbestos is a good first step. The society says Saskatchewan has shown leadership by being the first province in Canada to do so. But the group says the province should go further and make the registry mandatory for all public buildings..
The WHO has called for the recommendation of the Rotterdam Convention’s expert scientific committee to list chrysotile asbestos to be approved. It is extremely disturbing that the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), which is a WHO organization, presented at conference in Kiev to oppose the listing of chrysotile asbestos under the Rotterdam Convention by claiming that the science has not been established to show that chrysotile asbestos is hazardous.
