Civil society groups welcome the Bill to make India Asbestos Free

Press Release

The White Asbestos (Ban on Use and Import) Bill, 2009 in Rajya Sabha

Misinformation Campaign of “Safe & Controlled use” of asbestos condemned


New Delhi-20/11/2009: In the face massive asbestos exposure underway in India, recent ban on asbestos laden US ship, The White Asbestos (Ban on Use and Import) Bill, 2009 introduced in Rajya Sabha and the ban asbestos order of the Kerala State Human Rights Commission, environment, labour, human rights and health groups appeal to the Prime Minister and to all the parliamentarians to ensure that manufacture, use and trade of asbestos is banned in India.

There is incontrovertible evidence that creates a compelling logic for making India asbestos free to prevent an avoidable public health disaster facing our countrymen.

Advertisements in newspapers like The Times of India (20/11/2009) and news channels cannot hide the barbarism of the the asbestos industry. No amount of propaganda and public relations campaign can transform a poisonous and cancerous material like White Asbestos (chrysotile) into a non-poisonous material.

Almost every international health agency of repute including the World Health Organization, the International Labor Organization, International Agency for Research on Cancer, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, and the American Cancer Society agree there is no safe level of asbestos exposure. Even the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) reconfirmed that all commercial asbestos fibers - including chrysotile, the most commercially used form of asbestos - cause lung cancer and mesothelioma. In addition, the IARC newly confirmed that there is sufficient evidence that asbestos causes ovarian cancer and reconfirmed asbestos causes laryngeal cancer.

Acting as merchants of death and workers and consumers are routinely being exposed deadly asbestos fibers. Notably, worker protections and enviro-occupational health infrastructure are weak or non-existent in our country. The silence of the government in the face of workers and consumers who are sick and dying from asbestos-caused cancer is deafening. The parliament must act to stop the government from protecting the corporate criminals of the asbestos industry who are hiding behind manifest immoral patronage of the government.

The statement of objects and reasons of The White Asbestos (Ban on Use and Import) Bill, 2009 introduced in the parliament reads: “The white asbestos is highly carcinogenic even the World Health Organisation has reported that it causes cancer. It is a rare fibrous material that is used to make rooftops and break linings. More than fifty countries have already banned the use and import of white asbestos. Even the countries that export it to India prefer not to use it domestically. But in our country, it is imported without any restriction. Canada and Russia are the biggest exporters of white asbestos. In 2007, Canada exported almost Ninety five percent of the white asbestos it mined and out of it forty-three percent was shipped to India. It is quite surprising that our country is openly importing huge quantity of a product, which causes cancer. This is despite the fact that safer and almost cheap alternatives to asbestos are available in the country. Instead of importing a hazardous material, it will be better if we spend some money in research and development and use environment friendly product. In view of the above, there is an urgent need for a total ban on the import and use of white asbestos and promote the use of alternative material.”

Taking cognizance of the human rights violation involved in exposing people to killer asbestos fibers, Kerala State Human Rights Commission has noted that exposing consumers to asbestos fibers of all kinds including chrysotile constitutes violation of human rights in its order dated 31st January, 2009.

Civil society groups have consistently been drawing the urgent attention of the governments towards a serious unprecedented environmental and occupational health crisis with regard to unnoticed asbestos epidemic in the country.
Even if one asbestos fibre reaches the right place, it causes irreversible damage - leading to asbestosis, lung cancer or mesothelioma.

Thirty deaths are caused per day from asbestos-related diseases as per estimates based on US and European studies.

In such a context, Indian, Russian and Canadian government’s role in preventing the listing of chrysotile asbestos as a hazardous product under the Rotterdam Convention, an International Agreement that requires that importing countries be warned of the risks associated with hazardous products is condemnable. It is unconscionable that Canadian government knowingly exports a killer product that will kill thousands of people in India with the consent of the Indian government. As long as Indian, Russian and Canadian government continues to support, they would be and they must be deemed as one of the biggest violators of human rights on earth and unfit to be part of the rest of the civilized countries who have banned asbestos industry.

Human rights, environmental, public health and labour groups are shocked to note that instead of banning asbestos, the Canadian government uses tax-payers dollars and Canadian embassies to actively promote the sale of asbestos around the world. Working in tandem with the asbestos producing countries, Indian government has been making the asbestos products artificially cheaper to the detriment of its owns citizens.

Indian and the Canadian government must resist corporate influence of the chrysotile (white) asbestos industry and support the listing of chrysotile asbestos as a hazardous product under the UN's Rotterdam Convention as a first step at the next meeting of the Parties to the Rotterdam Convention. And as a next step, initiate efforts to ban its mining, manufacturing and its trade.

About Ban Asbestos Network of India
Ban Asbestos Network of India (BANI) is engaged in responding to public health crisis due to mining, manufacturing, use, and import of all forms of asbestos including Chrysotile. As part of a global anti-toxic activists’ coalition, BANI is fighting to ensure asbestos free ship-breaking. Asbestos is a commercial term for six fibrous minerals of which chrysotile (white asbestos), the fibrous form of serpentine, is the form of asbestos which is mostly used now. BANI was founded by public health and environmental health researchers and activists in 2002. For more information visit banasbestosindia.blogspot.com

Chrysotile Asbestos killing people like old 'landmines'

Note: While in India, there appears to be a political consensus in adopting an Ostrich policy, Canada's ruling Conservative party and its Prime Minister Stephen Harper is defending the corporate crimnes of asbestos industry.
Asbestos killing more Canadians than ever; like old 'landmines'

The Canadian Press

An aggressive cancer linked to asbestos is killing more Canadians than ever before, even decades after the end of a boom that saw buildings stuffed with the toxic substance.

The number of reported new cases annually of mesothelioma shot up 67 per cent over a decade and a half -- from 276 across the country to 461 -- according to the most recent federal figures.

Experts warn that the upward trend will continue for years as Canada feels the residual impact of its asbestos boom, and will likely be far worse in developing countries that still heavily use Canadian exports.

Most people diagnosed with mesothelioma have only six months to two years to live.

In British Columbia, deaths from asbestos-related diseases have increased as much as 69 per cent between 2002 and this year, according to the provincial workers' compensation board.

Over that same period in Quebec, where asbestos is still mined, the death rate climbed 39 per cent.

Mesothelioma, a cancer that is difficult to treat, is linked to past asbestos exposure in more than 80 per cent of cases.

It killed 32 per cent more Canadians in 2005 than in 2000, according to the most recent national figures available from Statistics Canada.

And these numbers may only tell part of the story, as many health experts believe the death toll could be much higher.

Hailed the "magic mineral" for its excellent insulating and fireproof properties, asbestos was widely used in Canada in the 1950s, '60s and '70s.

But studies linked the material to health risks, including cancer, and it was eventually labelled a hazardous substance.

Kathleen Ruff, the former director of the B.C. Human Rights Commission, says most Canadians mistakenly believe asbestos is a health issue from the past.

She cites the numbers as proof that it's more present than ever before.

"It's like landmines -- it goes on killing for decades and decades," she said in a phone interview from Smithers, B.C.

"We need to recognize that this is a major health crisis in Canada that's ongoing and still increasing (in) numbers every year."

The effects often strike retirees long after they've inhaled the sharp, needle-like asbestos fibres.

In many cases, victims never even know they've come into contact with it.

It usually takes up to 40 years for diseases linked to asbestos exposure -- such as mesothelioma, asbestiosis and other lung cancers -- to emerge.

Over several decades, the illnesses have remained dormant inside many unsuspecting Canadians.

And for many, the latency period is now expired.

"What you have now are people dying from asbestos-related diseases that were exposed anywhere from, say, 15 to 30 or 40 years ago," said Larry Stoffman, an occupational health expert with the United Food and Commercial Workers Union.

Stoffman expects the number of deaths across Canada to keep rising every year for the next five to 10 years -- until, finally, the number of cases reaches a plateau.

The long-term trend may be more severe in poorer countries.

In 2008, Canada's $100-million asbestos industry exported 175,000 tonnes of chrysotile -- almost all of it to developing nations. Some of the biggest importers include India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

"They're going to have just huge problems going forward," Stoffman said.

Due to health risks, asbestos is no longer used in Canada, but one variety of the substance -- called chrysotile -- is still mined in Thetford Mines, Que.

Ottawa has spent about $20 million since the mid-1980s to promote asbestos use. It maintains that chrysotile is "less potent" than other types of asbestos and insists that it is not dangerous when precautions are taken.

But the World Health Organization estimates that asbestos, regardless of the type, causes 90,000 preventable deaths each year around the world.

"It's like mentholated cigarettes were good tobacco versus the bad ones," Stoffman said of claims that chrysotile asbestos is safe.

"It really just repeats the kind of almost pathetic promotion of a product that the tobacco industry's well known for."

There is little political appetite to discuss the issue in Canada.

The Bloc Quebecois and the Conservatives, which represent the riding that encompasses Thetford Mines, support the asbestos industry. While in decline, the industry still employs several hundred people.

The New Democrats oppose Canada's asbestos business and Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff earlier this year declared that the country should stop exporting the material.

That remark prompted a local Liberal candidate to resign.

"It's bizarre, (Quebec) is about the only place in the world, outside of maybe Kazakhstan and parts of Russia, where people actually think this stuff is OK," Stoffman said.

Within Canada, statistics from Quebec's workplace safety board show that asbestos-related diseases are the top occupational health hazard in the province.

Over the first seven months of 2009, illnesses related to asbestos exposure were responsible for 61 of the 104 reported occupational deaths in Quebec.

And the number of deaths tied to asbestos could be much higher.

An epidemiologist with Quebec's public health department says numerous cases are never reported because many workers suffering from these illnesses never bother to seek compensation from workplace safety associations.

Those suffering from mesothelioma, who often have only months to left to live, consider monetary compensation a low priority, said Louise De Guire.

She said miners aren't the only ones at risk of developing these diseases.

The number of cases affecting construction workers has increased while those in the mining sector have stabilized, she said.

BANI Seeks Ban on White Asbestos Export from Canadian Prime Minister

Press Release

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

For Asbestos free India, BANI Demands immediate ban on export, import & use of white asbestos

BANI Seeks Ban on White Asbestos Export from Canadian Prime Minister

The White Asbestos (Ban on Use and Import) Bill, 2009 introduced in Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Parliament)

November 17, 2009, New Delhi –In the face massive asbestos exposure underway in India, The White Asbestos (Ban on Use and Import) Bill, 2009 introduced in Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Indian Parliament) and the order of the Kerala State Human Rights Commission, Ban Asbestos Network of India (BANI) appeals to the visiting Canadian Prime Minister, Mr Stephen Harper to put a ban on export of Canadian asbestos to India. He must act with effect to ban the asbestos mines in Quebec, the province where chrysotile asbestos (white asbestos) is mined in Canada.

It is unbecoming of Canadian to defend the asbestos industry and its barbarism unmindful of the fact that over 90% of Canada's asbestos goes to developing countries like India, where worker protections and enviro-occupational health infrastructure are weak or non-existent. The silence of Canadian government in the face of workers and consumers who are sick and dying from asbestos-caused cancer is deafening. Canadian government must stop protecting the corporate criminals of the asbestos industry who are hiding behind manifest immoral patronage of your government.

The STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS of The White Asbestos (Ban on Use and Import) Bill, 2009 introduced in the Indian Parliament reads: “The white asbestos is highly carcinogenic even the World Health Organisation has reported that it causes cancer. It is a rare fibrous material that is used to make rooftops and break linings. More than fifty countries have already banned the use and import of white asbestos. Even the countries that export it to India prefer not to use it domestically. But in our country, it is imported without any restriction. Canada and Russia are the biggest exporters of white asbestos. In 2007, Canada exported almost Ninety five percent of the white asbestos it mined and out of it forty-three percent was shipped to India. It is quite surprising that our country is openly importing huge quantity of a product, which causes cancer. This is despite the fact that safer and almost cheap alternatives to asbestos are available in the country. Instead of importing a hazardous material, it will be better if we spend some money in research and development and use environment friendly product. In view of the above, there is an urgent need for a total ban on the import and use of white asbestos and promote the use of alternative material.”

Taking cognizance of the human rights violation involved in exposing people to killer asbestos fibers, Kerala State Human Rights Commission has noted that exposing workers and consumers to asbestos fibers of all kinds including chrysotile constitutes violation of human rights in its order dated 31st January, 2009. BANI has consistently been drawing the urgent attention towards a serious unprecedented environmental and occupational health crisis with regard to unnoticed asbestos epidemic in the country. Even if one asbestos fibre reaches the right place, it causes irreversible damage - leading to asbestosis, lung cancer or mesothelioma. Thirty deaths are caused per day from asbestos-related diseases as per estimates based on US and European studies.

In such a context, Canadian government’s role in preventing the listing of chrysotile asbestos as a hazardous product under the Rotterdam Convention, an International Agreement that requires that importing countries be warned of the risks associated with hazardous products is condemnable. It is unconscionable that Canadian government knowingly exports a killer product that will kill thousands of people in India. As long as Canadian government continues to support, it would be and it must be deemed as one of the biggest violators of human rights on earth and unfit to be part of the rest of the civilized countries who have banned asbestos industry.

There is incontrovertible evidence that creates a compelling logic for making India asbestos free. The asbestos exporting countries in liaison with the Indian asbestos industry in collusion with government has unleashed a misinformation campaign about the mythical safe and controlled use of asbestos products, unmindful of the fact that so far some 50 countries have banned all forms of asbestos, and are already using alternative materials.

Almost every international health agency of repute including the World Health Organization, the International Labor Organization, International Agency for Research on Cancer, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, and the American Cancer Society agree there is no safe level of asbestos exposure. Most recently, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) reconfirmed that all commercial asbestos fibers - including chrysotile, the most commercially used form of asbestos - cause lung cancer and mesothelioma. In addition, the IARC newly confirmed that there is sufficient evidence that asbestos causes ovarian cancer and reconfirmed asbestos causes laryngeal cancer.

BANI calls upon the Indian Ministry of Health, Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Labour, Ministry of Consumer Affairs and Ministry of Mines as well to initiate steps for immediate ban on use, manufacture and trade of all forms of asbestos (including Chrysotile or White Asbestos).

BANI is shocked to note that instead of banning asbestos, the Canadian government uses tax-payers dollars and Canadian embassies to actively promote the sale of asbestos around the world.

BANI appeals to Mr Stephen Harper to resist corporate influence of the chrysotile (white) asbestos industry and support the listing of chrysotile asbestos as a hazardous product under the Rotterdam Convention as a first step at the next meeting of the Parties to the Rotterdam Convention. And as a next step, initiate efforts to ban its mining and export for good.

About Ban Asbestos Network of India
Ban Asbestos Network of India (BANI) is engaged in responding to public health crisis due to mining, manufacturing, use, and import of all forms of asbestos including Chrysotile. As part of a global anti-toxic activists’ coalition, BANI is fighting to ensure asbestos free ship-breaking. Asbestos is a commercial term for six fibrous minerals of which chrysotile (white asbestos), the fibrous form of serpentine, is the form of asbestos which is mostly used now. BANI was founded by public health and environmental health researchers and activists in 2002. For more information visit banasbestosindia.blogspot.com

For further details: Gopal Krishna, Ban Asbestos Network of India (BANI), Mb:09818089660, E-mail: krishnagreen@gmail.com, banasbestos@yahoo.com

THE WHITE ASBESTOS (BAN ON USE AND IMPORT) BILL, 2009

THE WHITE ASBESTOS (BAN ON USE AND IMPORT) BILL, 2009
A
BILL
to provide for a total ban on use and import of white asbestos in the country and to promote
the use of safer and cheaper alternative to white asbestos and for matters connected
therewith and incidental thereto.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Sixtieth Year of the Republic of India as follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the White Asbestos (Ban on Use and Import) Act, 2009. Short title
and
(2) It shall come into force with immediate effect. commencent.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,— Definitions.
(a) ‘‘appropriate day’’ means the day fixed by the Central Government to ban
the use and import of white asbestos which shall be within one month of the coming
into force of this Act;
2
(b) ‘‘prescribed’’ means prescribed by rules made under this Act.
3. Whereas the object of the Act is such as to provide for a ban on use and import of
Declaration of
ban on use and white asbestos, which is a fibrous mineral and has been reported to be highly carcinogenic,
import of
it is hereby declared that the Act propose for the ban on the use and import of white
white asbestos
asbestos is in the public interest.
in the public
interest.
4. (1) On and from the appointed day, there shall be a ban on the use and import of
Ban on use
and imports white asbestos;
of white
asbestos. (2) Whoever imports or uses white asbestos after the appointed day shall be guilty of
violating the provisions of this Act.
5. Whoever found guilty of violating the provisions of this Act shall be punished
Penalty.
with imprisonment, which may extend to three years or with fine, which may extend to
rupees two lakh or with both.
6. (1) Where a person committing a contravention of any of the provisions of this Act
Offences by
Companies. or of any rule, direction or order made thereunder is a company, every person who, at the
time the contravention was committed, was in charge of, and was responsible to, the com-
pany for the conduct of business of the company as well as the company, shall be guilty of
the contravention and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly:
Provided that nothing contained in this sub-section shall render any such
person liable to punishment, if he proves that the contravention took place without
his knowledge or that he exercised all due diligence to prevent such contravention.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contined in sub-section (1), where a contravention of
any of the provisions of this Act or of any rule, direction or order made thereunder has been
committed by a company and it is proved that the contravention has taken place with the
consent or connivance of, or is attributable to any neglect on the part of, any Director,
Manager, Secretary or other Officer of the company such Director, Manager, Secretary or
other Officer shall also be deemed to be guilty of the contravention and shall be liable to be
proceeded against and punished accordingly.
Explanation.— For the purpose of this section:—
(i) ‘‘company’’ means anybody corporate and include a firm or other associa-
tion of individuals; and
(ii) ‘‘director’’, in relation to a firm, means a partner in the firm.
7. The Central Government shall promote and encourage the use of safer and cheaper
Central
Government alternative to white asbestos and provide sufficient fund for research and development in
to Provide
the field in such manner as may be prescribed.
safer and
cheaper
alternative to
white
asbestos.
8. If any difficulty arise in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Power to
remove Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette make such provisions, not
difficulties.
inconsistent with the provisions of this Act as appears to it to be necessary or expedient for
removing the difficulty:
Provided that no such orders shall be made after the expiry of the period of three
years from the date of commencement of this Act.
9. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent
Act to have
overriding therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force relating to use and import of
effect.
white asbestos.
3
10. The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules for Power to
make rules.
carrying out the purposes of this Act.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The white asbestos is highly carcinogenic even the World Health Organisation has
reported that it causes cancer. It is a rare fibrous material that is used to make rooftops and
break linings. More than fifty countries have already banned the use and import of white
asbestos. Even the countries that export it to India prefer not to use it domestically. But in
our country, it is imported without any restriction. Canada and Russia are the biggest
exporters of white asbestos. In 2007, Canada exported almost Ninety five percent of the
white asbestos it mined and out of it forty-three percent was shipped to India. It is quite
surprising that our country is openly importing huge quantity of a product, which causes
cancer. This is despite the fact that safer and almost cheap alternatives to asbestos are
available in the country. Instead of importing a hazardous material, it will be better if we
spend some money in research and development and use environment friendly product. In
view of the above, there is an urgent need for a total ban on the import and use of white
asbestos and promote the use of alternative material.
Hence this Bill.
VIJAY JAWAHARLAL DARDA
4
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 7 of the Bill provides that the Central Government shall provide funds for
research and development for alternative products to white asbestos. The Bill, if enacted,
would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a
recurring expenditure of rupees twenty crore would be involved from the Consolidated
Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees five crore will also be involved.
5
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 10 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the matter will relate to details only, the delegation of legislative
powers is of normal character.
6
RAJYA SABHA
————
A
BILL
to provide for a total ban on use and import of white asbestos in the country and to
promote the use of safer and cheaper alternative to white asbestos and for matters
connected therewith and incidental thereto.
————
(Shri Vijay Jawaharlal Darda, M.P.)

Health experts warn government to drop asbestos

Deaths from asbestos still rising in Quebec

Hiding in the lungs of people for up to 40 years before they start developing symptoms, asbestos killed more Canadians this year than ever before.

According to a new report from the Alberta government, deaths from asbestos will continue to rise until they peak between 2015 and 2019.

Deaths from mesothelioma will plateau at 269 per year before beginning to slowly fall off, according to report. A substantial increase from the 127 mesothelioma deaths recorded over the 1980s.

“We have had the same results for the general population in Quebec,” said Louise De Guire, the director of biological, environmental and occupational risks for the Institut national de santé publique du Québec.

“We are in a mesothelioma epidemic right now,” she said. De Guire’s department estimated that cases will peak in Quebec in 2010.

“The rates of mesothelioma among men in Quebec has risen by 3.6 per cent annually between 1980 and 2002,” explained De Guire.

“Asbestos is the biggest killer of workers in Quebec, by far,” said Kathleen Ruff, a senior human rights advisor to the Rideau Institute. According to the Commission de la santé et de la sécurité du travail, nearly 60 per cent of worker deaths in Quebec so far in 2009 have been caused by asbestos-related diseases.

“From 1950 to 1970 there was a boom in construction in downtown Montreal. This was an era when asbestos was often used to insulate buildings and it was an era where the dangers were not well-known,” continued De Guire. “Nearly 50 per cent of people who ask for compensation from the CSST today were in the construction industry.

“The people who put asbestos in buildings in the 1970s are only showing their symptoms now.”

Asbestos miners represent only 30 per cent of mesothelioma deaths; an additional 10 per cent of cases are found in factory workers who used asbestos in products. The cost for the CSST, Quebec’s worker safety board, has already topped $66 million, which doesn’t include health care costs or the loss of work hours.

“[Asbestos is] not treated like a health issue in Canada, it’s a political issue and that is a huge tragedy,” said Ruff. “The Canadian government has betrayed public health to win a few votes in the asbestos mining region of Quebec.”

The Quebec government adopted a policy in 2002 that allowed for what it called the “safe use of asbestos.” This policy allowed for Quebec’s only existing asbestos project, in Thetford Mines, to continue exporting the fibrous material to the developing world.

“There were a series of newspaper articles that came from mining organizations at the time saying that the use of asbestos was not dangerous and that there was no asbestos problem in Quebec,” said De Guire. “We wrote a paper for [then-Minister of Health and Social Services Philippe Couillard] in 2005 to tell him that it was not a good idea to encourage the ‘safe’ use of asbestos in Quebec.”

After the report was written some positive steps were taken by the government, explained De Guire, including the removal of asbestos from all public buildings.

The Link, Concordia University, Montreal

by Justin Giovannetti


http://www.thelinknewspaper.ca/articles/1820

Asbestos Notes

Asbestos is currently found in three states only- Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand and Rajasthan. While Andhra Pradesh has the Chrysolite variety of asbestos, Rajasthan produces the Amphibolite variety.

The ban on mining of asbestos was imposed in phases in 1986 and 1993 but not on its use, manufacture, export and import. But despite the ban on mining, illegal mines are operating in Jharkhand, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh. Most asbestos-cement is using imported asbestos, but some of it is being sourced from the illegal mining though that is a relatively small proportion.

While the whole world is banning asbestos, Visaka Asbestos Industries is setting up new asbestos cement plant in Orissa. It is setting up a 100,000-tonne capacity asbestos cement sheet plant at Sambalpur in Orissa at an estimated cost of Rs 400 million to meet the rural demand, according to vice-chairman G Vivekanand. This apart, the company is ramping up the capacity of its Pune plant from 65,000 tonne to 100,000 tonne with Rs 150 million investment. This is expected to be ready in a year.

Rajasthan has 54 per cent of India’s asbestos resources. It has five to six operational mines. In the absence of formal lifting of ban on mining of asbestos, mining operations are on hold.
Rajasthan has approached the Centre against the ban on granting lease to asbestos mines in the state. The state's plea for granting lease to mining of asbestos is based on a study underaken by Indian Bureau of Mines that recommends lifting of the ban on mining of chrysotile asbestos.

In a proposal, the directorate of mines argues that on May 26, 1997, nine years after ministry of steel, mines and coal had issued directives for a ban on renewal or granting of new leases for mining asbestos, a fresh study was conducted on the impact of environment due to asbestos mining.

The mines department, quoting the Indian Bureau of Mines, which conducted the study, said that there was no adverse effect on environment or on the health of workers due to asbestos mining in Rajasthan.

The report also mentions that all safety measures like sprinkling of water, wet drilling, use of dust masks along with a periodic health check up of workers are done in the state. The report adds that despite the fact that asbestos is being mined in Rajasthan since the past 40 years, no report of illness has been reported from any of its workers.

Moreover, the proposal says that in a meeting held on January 22, 2007, the joint secretary, mines had advocated the lifting of ban on the Chrysolite variety of asbestos found in Andhra following which the additional director had opined on lifting of the ban on the Amphibolite variety too.

The state has also argued that the lifting of the ban would not only generate employment but will also bring in revenue for the state government.

Studies have shown that asbestos mining has deleterious effect on the health of workers and exposes them to diseases like asbestosis which can cause death.

In fact, it was in view of the adverse effects of asbestos mining on the health of the workers that the Central government directed the state governments in 1986 not to grant any new mining lease for asbestos (including chrysotile variety) in the country. In June 1993, the central government stopped the renewal of existing mining leases of asbestos.

India Bans Asbestos laden US ship

Jairam Ramesh, union environment minister of India has advised the Gujarat government and other agencies not to allow the beaching and dismantling of the controversial Platinum II ship at Alang.

An office memorandum sent from the Union ministry states that “In keeping with the Precautionary Principle, the ministry is of the view that granting permission for beaching and breaking purposes of the ship will not be advisable."

The memorandum said that "It has been brought to the notice of the ministry of environment and forests that the ship violated United States Toxic Substances Control Act and an order has been passed by the US Environment Protection Authority against the owners of the ship."

It also pointed out that there have also been allegations that the ship has been brought into India with a falsified flag and registry. It asked the Gujarat Maritime Board to look into the case of falsified ownership of the ship that had come under the scanner of the government and the civil society recently.

The ministry's decision came after the Gujarat Pollution Control Board had confirmed that the ship was laden with toxic materials. Consequent to the GPCB report, the Centre had sent its own team which reported that the ship did contain asbestos and cancer causing Poly Chlorinated Biphenyls though not in loose form but as part of the components in the ship. Documents had also surfaced showing that the ship had been brought in under false pretences to Indian waters and its ownership was not clear. Its Kiribati flag registration is thought to be false.

The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization Applauds American Public Health Association's Call for Ban on Asbestos, Annual Warnings for Workers in High-Risk Occupations

ADAO & APHA Urge Congress to Pass Legislation Banning Asbestos

Note point 10 of their resolution. For once, we have to hope our government is influenced by the U.S.

"APHA urges the US Administration to use its diplomatic influence with Canada, Russia and other countries to stop their dangerous practice of exporting asbestos." APHA Resolution: http://preview.tinyurl.com/yehk53o

Philadelphia, PA ...November 11, 2009 --- The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) applauds the American Public Health Association (APHA), the largest and most diverse public health organization in the world. APHA adopted a resolution calling on Congress to pass legislation banning the manufacture, sale, export, or import of asbestos containing products including products in which asbestos is a contaminant. Asbestos, a known carcinogen, annually claims the lives of more than 10,000 Americans.

"With this new policy, APHA is joining the World Federation of Public Health Associations and other international organizations calling for a global ban on asbestos mining, and manufacturing, and the dangerous practice of exporting asbestos containing products," said Celeste Monforton, DrPH, MPH, Chair of APHA's Occupational Health and Safety section. "As the World Health Organization noted in 2006, the most efficient way to eliminate asbestos related diseases is to stop using all types of asbestos."

"ADAO applauds APHA for passage of the landmark Elimination of Asbestos Resolution," said Linda Reinstein, Executive Director and Co-founder of the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization. "APHA set a precedent with strong language aimed at preventing asbestos exposure to eliminate deadly diseases. Ambler, Pennsylvania - now a superfund site - is still plagued from asbestos piles left behind from the once profitable asbestos businesses. We can't let history repeat itself - it is time to ban asbestos and fund educational and research programs. APHA renews our optimism that a federal asbestos ban is eminent."
# # #

About the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO)
Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) was founded by asbestos victims and their families in 2004. ADAO seeks to give asbestos victims and concerned citizens a united voice to help ensure that their rights are fairly represented and protected, while raising public awareness about the dangers of asbestos exposure and often deadly asbestos related diseases. ADAO is an independent volunteer organization. For more information visit www.asbestosdiseaseawareness.org


About the American Public Health Association (APHA)
Founded in 1872, the APHA is the oldest, largest and most diverse organization of public health professionals in the world. The association aims to protect all Americans and their communities from preventable, serious health threats and strives to assure community-based health promotion and disease prevention activities and preventive health services are universally accessible in the United States. APHA represents a broad array of health providers, educators, environmentalists, policy-makers and health officials at all levels working both within and outside governmental organizations and educational institutions. More information is available at www.apha.org



Media Contacts:
Doug Larkin
Director of Communications
Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO)
Phone: (202) 391-1546
doug@asbestosdiseaseawareness.org

Celeste Monforton, DrPH, MPH
Chair, Occupational Health & Safety Section
American Public Health Association
Phone: (202) 994-0774
celeste.monforton@gwumc.edu