Scientists Declare All Forms of Asbestos Toxic

Through the development of the Chrysotile Asbestos Fact Sheet (CAFS), the Environmental Information Agency (EIA) and the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization have concluded that chrysotile asbestos is a carcinogenic substance.

In addition, the EIA and ADAO stated there is enough evidence to support that all forms of asbestos can be responsible for causing asbestos-related lung cancers, laryngeal cancer and ovarian cancer. Chrysotile, among other forms of asbestos, is listed as one of the few mesothelioma causes.

According to their Web site, the EIA is a multidisciplinary association that collects, generates and disseminates information concerning environmental health hazards to occupants of buildings, industrial sites and other facilities.

The ADAO is an organization founded by asbestos victims and their families. Established in 2004, the ADAO “seeks to give asbestos victims a united voice to help ensure that their rights are fairly represented and protected, while raising public awareness about the dangers of asbestos exposure.”

Structured by asbestos medical experts and scientists with more than 300 collective years of experience, the CAFS provides clear information concerning the hazards of chrysotile. Scientists hope to present the CAFS to the United States Congress in support of the continued effort to ban asbestos.

Brent Kynoch, the Managing Director of the EIA, said “The Environmental Information Agency is proud to collaborate with the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization to produce the Chrysotile Asbestos Fact Sheet in an effort to clarify the misinformation released on the very real dangers of asbestos exposure.”

Linda Reinstein, Executive Director of ADAO, said, “Asbestos exposure is the world’s leading cause of cancer in the workplace and the United States Congress must act now and ban asbestos. Prevention is our only cure for asbestos-caused diseases.”

According to a 2004 study published by the Environmental Working Group, approximately 10,000 Americans pass away each year from asbestos exposure. In addition, the study estimated that one million U.S. workers are exposed to asbestos each year.

Additional information about mesothelioma and asbestos exposure may be found through the Mesothelioma Cancer Center.

Canadian Politician Labeled as a "Liar" Due to Statements on Asbestos Exports

OTTAWA - Canada has long been criticized by numerous world leaders because of the nation's shameful, large-scale production and exportation of asbestos-a well known cancer-causing substance. In a statement issued in early April, Liberal Party leader Michael Ignatieff said he unequivocally favored a ban on Canada's export of extremely toxic asbestos to developing countries that are known to have a lax attitude about protecting the health of its citizens.

"I'm probably walking right off the cliff into some unexpected public policy bog of which I'm unaware, " Ignatieff stated, "but if asbestos is bad for parliamentarians in the parliament of Canada, it just has to be bad for everyone else. Our export of this dangerous product overseas has got to stop."

All well and good, and Ignatieff had been widely praised by numerous environmentalist groups for his comments, but, during a discussion with reporters last week, the liberal politician seemed to backtrack on his calling for a nationwide ban on the exportation of asbestos by saying, "We have 60 years of experience with this product. What I said in answer to a question is that we have an obligation to international agreements to the countries that we export to, to make them aware of the risks. That's all I said."

Others would disagree. Kathleen Ruff, who is a senior advisor on the subject of international human rights for the Ottawa-based think-tank Rideau Institute, has a different interpretation of Ignatieff's latest statements on the subject of asbestos. "I knew he would be under pressure to retract what he said, but that's an out-and-out lie," said Ruff. It should be noted that the Rideau Institute and the Canadian Cancer Society have both advocated tirelessly on behalf of a complete ban on Canada's export of asbestos.

Asbestos was once an extremely popular material that had been embraced by countless industries worldwide. The material can be mined in abundance from below ground deposits or extracted from exposed rock formations that can be located in nations around the globe. Asbestos is relatively inexpensive, nearly fireproof, has a high tensile strength, resists damage from harsh chemical corrosives, and has superior insulating qualities. For all these reasons and more, asbestos found its way into a wide variety of products from building materials to hair curlers to home appliances to talcum powder.

In the early 1970s, health researchers confirmed the fact that asbestos posed a dire threat to the health of those individuals who inhaled microscopic, airborne asbestos fibers. These oftentimes needle-like fibers become permanently lodged in soft lung tissues where they can, up to 50 years later, cause serious respiratory disease such as asbestosis and the far more dreaded cancer killer known as malignant pleural mesothelioma. Because asbestos poses such a significant threat to human health, Canada's continued export of the toxic substance is deemed by many to be "inexcusable."

Canadian occupational health agency studies have concluded that exposures to asbestos accounted for approximately 60 percent of all work related deaths in the country in 2005. In spite of these dramatic numbers, Canada remains one of the world's largest producers of asbestos, all of it coming from a single asbestos mine in Quebec. Approximately 90 percent of the asbestos that comes from the Quebec mine is exported to developing nations where it's typically used in a variety of cement-based products.

To further defend Ignatieff's retraction of his earlier endorsement of a ban on asbestos exports, a spokesman for the politician said, "We've long known about the risks of asbestos, and we have a duty to warn countries that we export to about these risks and work to end any practices that put health at risk, at home or abroad." Ignatieff's critics dismissed the spokesperson's comments and vow to continue to fight Canada's asbestos export policies.

Mesothelioma deaths still increasing according to CDC

The Centers for Disease Control reports that deaths from mesothelioma are rising in the United States.

This week's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report covered mesothelioma fatalities over the past several years.

The CDC counted 18000 mesothelioma deaths in the US over the seven-year period from 1999 to 2005, with 2704 deaths in 2005. The number of malignant mesothelioma fatalities is rising year to year in rough proportion to the population: the annual death rate has been steady at about 14 per million.

The agency expects the number of mesothelioma deaths to peak next year, and to begin to decline, as the improvements in safety and reduction in asbestos use instituted decades ago payoff. The latency period of mesothelioma can be decades long, so even though asbestos is used less widely today, people continue to get mesothelioma due to their exposure in the past.

The writers of the report admit a limitation in their analysis is the lack of asbestos exposure history on death certificates and a general dearth of information on work history.

Consistent with their public health mission, the CDC states "maintenance, renovation, or demolition activities that might disturb asbestos should be performed with precautions." The Mesothelioma Web has been relaying this advice for years.

Previous analysis by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health found high rates of mesothelioma among people who worked in ship building, chemicals, refining, and construction.

The full text of the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report is on-line at:

http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5815a3.htm?s_cid=mm5815a3_x