Quebec Looks to Revive Canadian Asbestos Exportation

The Quebec government has stunned international markets with the news – announced over Canada day weekend – that it was following through with a whopping $58 million loan to Balcorp Ltd., the company which wants to reopen the giant Jeffrey Mine in Quebec’s Eastern Townships.

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Prime Minister Steven Harper has stayed silent on the issue for political reasons. With the scientific community united in its opinion that there is no safe level of exposure to any kind of asbestos, even the Chrysotile Institute, which long lobbied for the “safe” extraction and use of chrysotile asbestos over other types, recently announced its disbanding.

Still, Balcorp. and the Quebec-based industry insist that the substance, also called white asbestos, can be mined and used safely in construction and other applications as an alternative to other types of asbestos, for example brown, blue or tremolite asbestos.

Since asbestos has been banned from virtually all uses in developed countries in Europe and North America, the material is destined for exportation to developing nations like India, Indonesia and Vietnam. The move is widely seen throughout the rest of Canada as a black eye for this country on the world stage and has been criticized by the Canadian Medical Association and the Canadian Cancer Association.

No level of exposure is considered safe, and ignorance is definitely not bliss where this dangerous material is concerned.

Could There Be Asbestos in Your Home?
Get expert help. The fact of the matter is that if your home was built before 1970, you have to assume that it contains asbestos, and it may appear in a wide variety of places.

Before any renovation projects, call in the experts from GreenStream Environmental Services for an asbestos inspection. At GreenStream Environmental Services, we offer professional vermiculite and asbestos remediation services to help you contain and then rid yourself of this problem.

Certainly, if you’re planning on buying an older home, it should be an essential part of your pre-purchase checklist.

In the Toronto area contact GreenStreamEnvironmental.ca at (416) 818-9414.

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