BBC Reports on Wordwide Asbestos Trade a

BBC Reports on Wordwide Asbestos Trade and Mesothelioma Risk

A report co-authored by the British Broadcasting Corporation and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists on the worldwide asbestos trade came out last week. The report consisted of nine months' worth of interviews, research and investigation into the status of the asbestos industry. The report found that the industry continues to operate, often under the protection of local and national governments, despite the mineral's proven status as a health hazard.

"Dangers in the Dust", which will be featured on BBC newscasts and its website, showed how the asbestos mines in the tiny town of Asbestos, Quebec, continue to receive financial support from both the provincial and federal government agencies. The Jeffrey Mine is the town's leading employer. The mine owners are expecting the approval of a government-guaranteed loan package to expand the mines worth over fifty million dollars.

Many of the town's seven thousand residents either work in the mines or in business that depend on the mineworkers' paychecks to stay afloat. Bernard Coulombe, president of the Jeffrey Mine, said that the damaging report was "terrible publicity" and could damage the company's efforts to receive the aid loan. The mine produces chrysotile asbestos, also called "white asbestos", which it exports to developing countries for use in the construction and shipbuilding industries.

One of the main groups behind the support of the asbestos industry in Quebec is the Chrysotile Institute, formerly called the Asbestos Institute. Clement Godbout, president of the Institute, said that his group's mission is to educate the public about the safe use of chrysotile asbestos. According to the report, government agencies in both Ottawa and Quebec City have contributed more than thirty-five million dollars to the Chrysotile Institute over the last quarter-century.

The mines in southeastern Quebec are the primary source of the country's asbestos, although the mineral is no longer widely used in Canada. Instead, most of the mine's products are shipped to countries such as India, Indonesia and Mexico. These countries often do not employ the same level of worker safety regulations that more developed nations have in place. Workers do not use proper safety equipment or take the necessary precautions can develop respiratory disorders when they inhale loose asbestos fibers.

Jim Morris, one of the journalists who spearheaded the investigation, said that the protests against the use of the dangerous mineral have been on the rise in both developed and developing countries. He said that the belief that asbestos can be safely handled and does not pose a significant danger does not hold up against the facts.

Numerous scientific studies have established the link between asbestos exposure and mesothelioma, an incurable form of cancer that strikes the soft tissue around the lungs. Mesothelioma has a long latency period; patients may not exhibit symptoms until decades after their initial exposure period. With such a long latency, health care industry observers estimate that deaths related to asbestos exposure are expected to escalate for the next twenty years as more patients exhibit signs of illness.

Sources: BBC, Montreal Gazette

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