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NEWS > EVERYONE ELSE > CANADA STARTS SPREADING ASBESTOS AROUND THE GLOBE
CANADA STARTS SPREADING ASBESTOS AROUND THE GLOBE
February 20 2011
Asbestos, Canada – When the vast majority of people think of Canada, if they do at all, what they think is mostly pleasant and docile things, snowshoes and beavers, maple syrup and hockey. For the bulk of the world that is all Canada is, a nation of 
pleasant people who would scarcely hurt a fly. Unlike the reputation of their sibling nation to the south, Canada has, for all people really do think of it, a genuine dispassionate affection from the vast majority of the world.
Of course, Canada isn’t all igloos and hockey pucks and never has been. It is a major industrialized nation, one of the wealthiest in the world, with a diverse and complex population, the latter of which has helped to define its occasionally volatile domestic politics. Still, when it comes to international reputations and standing in the global community there are few that would argue that Canada wouldn’t be in the top tier of countries. Of course, things can turn on a dime and that may be exactly what has started to happen with the friendly northern nation. A new plan to re-open a long abandoned asbestos mine in Quebec, with plans to export the potentially deadly mineral to developing nations, has caused many to accuse the nation of deliberately exporting hazardous materials and of becoming a full-fledged death dealer.
“It is almost beyond belief that a free and democratic nation like Canada is willing to sacrifice human lives in poor and developing nations on the altar of avarice and greed. Based on all the studies that looked at where cancer occurs -- the pleural cavity or lining of the lung -- the most common fibre is chrysotile,” one expert told AOL news. “Canada seems to care more for its own economic well-being and not weigh the horrible effects their greed will have on the lives of countless others throughout the world will suffer and die from continued exposure to asbestos.”
At the core of the debate is the reopening of a chrysotile ore mine and the export of that material to other nations, despite it being outlawed in Canada.
“Asbestos is a Type 1 carcinogen and has been outlawed in the bulk of the western world including Europe, more or less in the United States, and in Canada. It can be, when treated improperly, extremely dangerous and a major cause of both lung cancer and Mesothelioma,” said Scrape TV Health analyst Rebecca Phelps. “There is a reason it has been outlawed in so many countries and a reason that mining of the material has been stopped in many places. That said, Canada is one of the leading resources for the ore that creates asbestos and so there is a great desire to keep up production. It is true that if the material is dealt with properly that it is relatively safe, and that other toxic materials such as coal and oil are routinely harvested, but asbestos does have a particularly nasty reputation.”
Last year 107,000 people around the world died of asbestos related disease.
“One must also remember that Canada is leading exporter of uranium, another consumer good that has been proven to be very toxic when used improperly. Unfortunately the reality is that the place to which the asbestos is being sold are the places where it is most likely to be misused. Aside from the health concerns, it is also possible that they are using this to test the waters to distribute other hazardous materials,” continued Phelps. “It may not be long until we start seeing uranium showing up in third world nations all over the globe which would cause a lot more problems than just giving a few people a little cough. This could be the start of something ominous from the snow-ridden hinterlands, something I think few people saw coming.”
Last year the Canadian government axed a plan to ship used hypodermic needles to a elementary school in Norway.
Emil Uliya, International Correspondent
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