asbestos pusher to the world: Straightgoods.com Date: Mon, 28 May 2007 16:46:43 -0500 (CDT) http://www.straightgoods.ca/ViewFeature7.cfm?REF=270 Asbestos pusher to the world Canada's asbestos legacy kills tens of thousands at home and abroad. Dateline: Tuesday, May 15, 2007 by James T Brophy, Phd, Margaret M Keith, Phd, Jenny Schieman, RN, Cohn (C) Asbestos has been called the, "most pervasive environmental hazard in the world," and in all its forms, including serpentine chrysotile, is recognized for its potent toxicity and is responsible for tens of thousands of preventable cancer deaths globally each year. Over 300 million tons of asbestos have been mined in the last century, and has found its way into thousands of products because of its resistance to heat, exceptional strength, and insulating properties. The most prevalent use of asbestos today is in cement materials, mainly manufactured and used in developing countries. Chrysotile asbestos is the most ubiquitous form, representing virtually all of the asbestos mined currently around the globe. Canada has remained essentially alone among industrialized countries in failing to acknowledge and act upon the increasing incidence of mesothelioma and other asbestos-related cancers and respiratory diseases. 1bee574.jpgFor instance, throughout Europe, where scientists have estimated in excess of half a million cases of mesothelioma and asbestos-related lung cancer would occur between 1995 and 2029, a total ban of this product has been legislated after considerable public pressure. Asbestos forums, regularly organized throughout Europe, the United States and other industrialized countries, involve medical and legal professionals, trade unionists, and representatives of victims' groups, all of whom are committed to focusing attention on this totally preventable cancer epidemic. Yet in Canada, one seldom finds much mention of asbestos disease, even from the informed scientific community. The government of Canada contends that Canadian asbestos chrysotile or white asbestos is a weak carcinogen. Canada steadily maintains this position in spite of the overwhelming scientific consensus to the contrary. Major health organizations such as the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), the Collegium Ramazzini, and the World Health Organization (WHO) classify all forms of asbestos, including chrysotile, as human carcinogens, and have determined that there is no safe threshold at which there is no cancer risk. Asbestos remains one of the most glaring examples in all of occupational health in Canada of the gap between the scientific evidence of harm and the lack of "adequate preventive measures." The Canadian federal government continues to argue for the "controlled use" of chrysotile asbestos. The concept of "controlled use" is based on the erroneous belief that, in developing countries, there exist the legal infrastructure and the technologic capacity to reduce asbestos dust exposure to almost zero. In Canada, occupational health and safety regulations and workers' compensation generally fall under provincial jurisdiction, with each province setting its own standards and policies. For example, in the province of Ontario, the asbestos exposure standard is 0.1 fibers/cc. Even with rigid precautions and controls, such an exposure poses a lifetime toll of five excess lung cancer deaths and two asbestosis deaths per 1,000 workers. These estimates do not include any projections for mesothelioma. Further, these deaths are occurring under a Canadian standard that would represent "controlled use." In contrast, other developed nations, such as Sweden, which has some of the most advanced health and safety protections in the world, believe that they cannot control asbestos exposures and therefore have banned its use. With advanced capitalist economies rejecting in practice "controlled use," developing countries are being left to deal with this hazard with minimal levels of protection. For over 60 years the asbestos industry has known about the carcinogenic potential of asbestos. But, for decades, the industry actively kept this information from its employees and the public. Because of this unethical behavior and the toxicity of its product, many of the corporate producers and users of asbestos in the United States have now been forced out of business or are under bankruptcy protection, facing billions of dollars of liability for their negligence.... http://www.straightgoods.ca/ViewFeature7.cfm?REF=270 Penney Kome, author and journalist http://penneykome.ca Editor, Straight Goods, http://straightgoods.com [demime 1.01d removed an attachment of type application/octet-stream which had a name of 1bee574.jpg] Google Alert - nuclear Date: Tue, 29 May 2007 14:34:50 -0700

Google News Alert for: nuclear

Top US Official Heads to India for Nuclear Talks
HULIQ - Hickory,NC,USA
Officials in India Monday say a top US diplomat will visit New Delhi this week to help resolve disputes about a US-India nuclear agreement. ...
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North Koreans Arrive in South for Talks Overshadowed by Nuclear ...
CanadianBusiness.com - Toronto,Ontario,Canada
But Seoul has not begun the shipments in an apparent attempt to delay delivery until after North Korea fulfills its nuclear obligations. ...
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Solana confirms Iran nuclear talks
Tehran Times - Tehran,Iran
HAMBURG, Germany (Reuters) -- EU Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana confirmed on Tuesday that he would meet Iranian nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani this ...
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Iran's Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Uranium Enrichment for Non-Specialists
Payvand - Iran
The primary aim of this article is to explain Iran 's nuclear fuel cycle and the uranium based nuclear enrichment technology at the level of a ...
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Labour's nuclear power plan isn't safe and isn't green
Socialistworker.co.uk - London,UK
The government's latest energy white paper claims that the way to reduce carbon emissions is through nuclear power. Alistair Darling, the trade and industry ...
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Advice found on axing state bans on nuclear
Brisbane Times - Brisbane,Queensland,Australia
THE Federal Government has received legal advice on how to overturn bans by the states on nuclear power stations. Preliminary work has also been done on an ...
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Top US Nuclear Negotiator Urges North Korea to End Weapons Programs
Voice of America - USA
The United States' top nuclear negotiator urged North Korea to quickly honor its February commitment to shut down its nuclear reactor. ...
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Iran offers nuclear help to neighbors
Middle East Times - Cairo,Egypt
TEHRAN -- There is nothing to stop Iran from helping its Persian Gulf neighbors develop nuclear power facilities, Iranian foreign minister Manouchehr ...
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NRC seeks to keep nuclear plant guards more alert with new rules
York Dispatch - York,PA,USA
Federal regulators are revising work rules to help keep security guards at nuclear plants alert and not sleepy, recognizing that fatigue can also be an ...
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Iran and the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty (NPT)
OpEdNews - Newtown,PA,USA
The pretext for attacking Iran will be that it is in violation of the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty (NPT), an international treaty that was presented to ...
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