Health Canada, Canada’s federal health agency, is one of the few health organizations internationally that has not taken the position that exposure to chrysotile asbestos is hazardous to your health and that preventing such exposure would also prevent cancer. Most health organizations, from the World Health Organization to Canada’s own Canadian Cancer Society have said that exposure to chrysotile asbestos is a health risk and should be stopped. Health Canada has started its own study of the health risks associated with exposure to chrysotile asbestos fibers, the only type of asbestos still in widespread commercial use in developing nations, and also the type of asbestos mined and exported from Canada. The study is intended to address the ability of chrysotile asbestos to produce serious illnesses, such as lung cancer, mesothelioma and asbestosis. It is also expected to compare the risks of chrysotile asbestos with other types.
Many public health advocates argue that the questions posed by the study have already been answered: numerous scientific reviews by prominent international organizations have found all types of asbestos, including chrysotile asbestos like that mined in Canada, cause cancer. Critics believe that the Canadian government may be trying to produce research data to bolster its argument that chrysotile asbestos should not be included on the list of most hazardous substances in the world when the issue is considered at the UN-sponsored Rotterdam Convention later this year. Health Canada did not announce that it is performing this study, but Quebec Federation of Labour officials revealed the study as a reason to delay a vote by the Canadian Labour Congress to support an asbestos ban. See related story.
For the full story, go to The Globe and Mail.
