New Asbestos Regulations, The Canadian Government Fails Again

There is a new asbestos regulation being put in place by the Canadian government. Due to improper handling and bad adherence to safety regulations, asbestos has acquired a long trail of negative effects. As a result, the Canadian government is taking strides to stop imports from entering the country. Many construction and automobile industries find it nearly impossible to work productively in the absence of the naturally occurring mineral asbestos. According to recent scientific research, there is only one form of asbestos currently in production. White asbestos, also known as chrysotile has been proven by scientists to be safely usable without causing any harm to its users.

Ironically, Canada was once the global trailblazer of the mining and export of asbestos. Recent changes have demolished this ranking. Between the years of 1960 and 1970 asbestos was highly used in building infrastructures and many residential construction projects. A publicity stunt gone wrong caused the export of asbestos to rapidly fall in the 1970’s. Along with this fall off, a huge portion of the Canadian asbestos industry crashed down with it. Those against asbestos are doing everything they can to eliminate the mineral, and the Canadian government is sweeping the problems that are truly detrimental under the rug.

Those affected by the mineral are usually unaware of their condition. It can take years for the symptoms of the illness to surface. Twentieth century illnesses were shown to be a product of harmful forms of asbestos. Though the forms of asbestos that contributed in the development of related illnesses are no longer in use today, the new legislation isn’t sheading any light on the need to remove damaging asbestos from both government and public infrastructures. Neither is the legislation trying to bring awareness to the prohibition of unsafe asbestos entering the country.

According to recent research, white asbestos isn’t showing any signs that it is harmful. In fact, scientists believe that it is completely safe when used properly. Using white asbestos requires it to be fused inside unharmed products. Fully banning the mineral is the goal of the Canadian legislation, and the new legislation isn’t concerned about the consequences of harming other industries in the process. It is a waste of time, energy and money when concerning oneself with fixing something that is not broken. To better utilize its resources, the government needs to expend it’s time to aid in reducing the deficit. The government should discover better ways to disburse public money to aid in extra support for veterans while creating more affordable housing opportunities. The new asbestos regulations are adding to the long list of failures of the Canadian government. There are so many more important issues to focus on. Eliminating nonharmful asbestos isn’t one of them.