Canadian MP Working to Ban Asbestos Exportation

The Canadian federal government is being accused of exporting asbestos to third world countries by the NDP MP of Manitoba, Pat Martin. The allegations derived from data that cites Ottawa approves over 200,000 tons of asbestos exports each year.

Martin has been a leader in the fight against asbestos after he learned that during his two years spent working at a fiber mining operation in the Yukon, he may have been exposed to asbestos. In 2006 he supported a ban on chrysotile asbestos export, a form of the carcinogen not on the United Nations watch list of perilous chemicals.

Recently, Martin filed a motion in front of the Canadian House of Commons to recognize Asbestos Disease Awareness Day on the first day of April each year. This would also include better health services for those suffering from asbestos-related diseases.

Exposure to asbestos can lead to a number of illnesses including asbestosis and malignant mesothelioma, a fatal form of cancer. Due to a long latency period, symptoms of asbestos-related diseases typically appear 20 to 50 years after exposure.

Martin has received support from the Canadian Cancer Society who, as reported by the Ottawa Citizen, wrote to Prime Minister Stephen Harper to set up a timeline to phase out the exportation and use of asbestos. The organization also asked the Prime Minister to not donate $250,000 to the Asbestos Institute in the next year. The Asbestos Institute supports the chrysolite asbestos industry and the Canadian Cancer Society would rather the funding go to compiling a list of public buildings where asbestos is present.