Letter To MP In Support Of ‘StopAsbestos’ Campaign

August 12, 2011 by Ann-Marie Waters · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Asbestos Campaigns 
Canada is the leading exporter of asbestos to third-world countries, where unsuspecting victims use the deadly material as building insulation. In 2006 – Canada’s Conservative Government refused to acknowledge experts advice regarding the toxicity of asbestos and shunned the idea that asbestos should be added to the UN’s list of toxic substances.
Canada’s ignorance concerning the dangers of asbestos has led them to stoop to even lower levels of irresponsibility by blocking international attempts to add health/safety warning labels to exported asbestos.
How can the Canadian Government justify such ignorance when scientific and medical evidence clearly shows that asbestos is a carcinogen and causes over 100,000 lives every year?
Are they merely trying to preserve the jobs of their 1,600 asbestos mine workers and the ‘economy pot’ at the expense of thousands of lives?

An asbestos mine worker in Andhra Pradesh, India, handling asbestos

A high majority of Conservative MPs’ in Canada are refusing to ackwnoweledge any corrospondence concerning their ‘lone stance’ on the dangers of asbestos.
I have sent this letter to one of the Conservative MPs’, hoping for a reply or at least some sort of acknowledgement. If the Conservatives choose not to have a voice – then we – the public need to have a voice for those vulnerable people in developing countries and help to put an end to asbestos exportation for good.
‘Please support the ‘StopAsbestos’ campaign by writing to one of Canada’s Conservative MPs’. A Link for the list of MPs’ can be found at the end of my letter:
Letter to Conservative MP Chris Alexander. .  . . . . .
Dear Chris,
I am writing with reference to the exportation and use of asbestos in Canada. As a British citizen – I am absolutely shocked and dumfounded by Canada’s role in asbestos – as here in the UK, our regulations prohibit the importation, supply and use of all forms of asbestos. This ban was introduced (predominantly for blue and brown asbestos in 1985 followed by white asbestos in 1999.
This ban is a result of the support of our MPs’ that relentlessly fought tooth and nail to protect their people from the devastating ill affects of asbestos exposure.
I cannot comprehend how any MP could justify in having an ‘ignorant stance’ on the continued use of asbestos – as asbestos has been officially classified as a known human carcinogen by the United States of Health and Human Services, the International Agency for Research on Cancer, and the EPA, (Environmental Protection Agency).
Millions of people have died as a result of asbestos exposure. The truth and evidence is written on their death certificates, and the hearts and minds of their devastated loved ones. I personally know people that have died from mesothelioma – one of the cruellest asbestos causing diseases I have ever witnessed. ‘Can you imagine what it would feel like to be told that you have only 8 months to live? That is exactly what most mesothelioma victims hear at their first consultation. A friend of mine was exposed to asbestos as a young child when her daddy would regularly scoop her up in his arms after a long day of working with asbestos. She inhaled the minute fibres from his work clothing.
I understand that one of your constituents (Doreen Strachen) died recently from mesothelioma. She was exposed to chrysotile asbestos fibres through laundering her husband’s overalls. I met one of her daughters through my mesothelioma/asbestos support group and both daughters live in fear every day, with the knowledge that mesothelioma has a long latency period of 10-50 years and that they could develop it at any time.
Among industrialized countries,  - not only does Canada ‘stands alone’ and continually chooses to ignore and acknowledge the thousands of cases of mesothelioma and other asbestos-related cancer, but still continues to sacrifice the lives of people in poor and developing countries through the exportation of deadly asbestos.
Chris, it is my hope that you will hear my concerns, and that you will choose to have a voice for your people, the very people that rely on their MPs’ to protect them and their families. Please follow Conservative MPs’ Ed Holder and Pat Davidson in the ban and exportation of asbestos.
I sincerely hope and pray that the citizens of Canada and developing countries afflicted by asbestos disease will have the privilege to feel much safer again as we UK citizens do in the eminent future.
For a complete list of MPs’ that support ‘StopAsbestos’ campaign – please see here:
I will appreciate and look forward to hearing your thoughts on this matter.
Yours sincerely   . . .
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Asbestos: The Hidden Health Hazard in Millions of Homes

July 22, 2011 by Ann-Marie Waters · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Mesothelioma/Asbestos Guardian News!! 

Powered by Guardian.co.ukThis article titled “Asbestos: the hidden health hazard in millions of homes” was written by Andrew Don, for The Observer on Saturday 30th April 2011 23.01 UTC

Your home has a 50% chance of harbouring asbestos, which could be lethal if disturbed.

The use of asbestos has been common in the industrialised world since the mid-19th century and it was not until 1999 that a total ban was imposed. Lee Carter, principal director of the consultants WSP Environment & Energy, says that it has been widely used in residential property: “Among private homes, more than 50% are likely to include some asbestos-containing materials.”

While this may sound alarming, asbestos is likely to be dangerous only if it is released into the air and you breathe it in. Then you could be at long-term risk of developing lung cancer, asbestosis or mesothelioma (a cancer that forms in the lining of the chest or abdomen). Experts say that there should be little or no risk if the asbestos is enclosed and left undisturbed but it must be regularly checked for signs of deterioration.

But accidents happen and the previously dormant devil within could be released when “improvement” work is being carried out, for example, or when a burst pipe causes damage to ceilings.

This is what happened to Brian Fitzpatrick, 49, from South Darenth, Kent, who endured the Christmas from hell when he discovered water damage in his house on 22 December. Pipes had burst in the loft and contractors alerted him to the threat of asbestos in the Artex coating on his ceilings. Before the sample results came back, one of the ceilings collapsed and the industrial dryer blew asbestos around the house. Fitzpatrick and his family have had to relocate while repairs and decontamination take place, a process that could continue for several more months.

Although the results of sampling tests indicated a low number of asbestos particles in the air, the family remain concerned for the future. Fitzpatrick, a partner at the building consultancy EC Harris, said: “It’s a nightmare. No one expected asbestos. Emotionally, the experience has been traumatic for all the family but especially for my wife and daughter.”

Fitzpatrick says that his insurer is picking up the £10,000 cost of replacing all 13 ceilings, as well as the cost of air-quality and material sampling tests, and is paying up to £30,000 for the family’s emergency accommodation. The soft furnishings in the house will have to be disposed of under controlled conditions.

But the Association of British Insurers points out that policies will cover removal of asbestos only as part of a householder’s damage claim, and not simply because asbestos happens to have been identified.

In older homes, asbestos is often present in ceilings decorated using Artex textured coating. This is because, until the mid-1980s, Artex was made with white asbestos to strengthen it. However, Joe Oakins, a surveyor at Vintec Environmental Management, says: “We find asbestos products used in the strangest places and sometimes apparently for no reason. Often builders used whatever they had lying around, so you often find off-cuts of asbestos boards used as packing and filler.”

Peter Coling, technical director at Kinleigh Folkard & Hayward Chartered Surveyors, estimates that 30% of asbestos is found in ceiling coatings, 15% in boiler flue pipes and ducts, and 15% in floor tiles. A further 15% is found in areas such as cold water storage tanks, insulation materials, eaves, gutters and rainwater pipes, while 10% is in cement panel ceilings, 10% in outbuildings and 5% in fire protection materials, for example on the underside of integral garage roofs and in cupboards enclosing boilers.

Phil Wright, chief engineer at the inspection and insurance service Allianz Engineering, says: “It is difficult to establish how much asbestos is present in a home without employing a specialist to undertake a full inspection.” Samples need to be taken for analysis at a laboratory approved by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service.

Debbie Hales, director of Asbestos First, one of 450 licensed removal firms in the UK, says: “With textured coatings you have to take [samples] from different locations. It can be free of asbestos in one part and not in the next because of the way it was manufactured.”

Hales says that the cost of a sampling visit should be about £150 plus VAT. If any additional samples are required during the visit, expect to pay about £20 plus VAT per sample. To remove an area of textured coating, such as Artex, containing asbestos costs about £1,200 plus VAT for up to 20sq m, including disposal and air-quality tests.


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