Chrysotile asbestos accounts for about 90% of all serpentine asbestos found around the world. The most commonly used form of asbestos, the mining and export of chrysotile has prompted a continuous battle between health professionals and countries that mine chrysotile, such as Canada, Russia, and Italy. While these mining countries consider the mineral to be safe and eagerly export it to others, many organizations maintain that it presents a health hazard. Evidence shows that chrysotile asbestos has been in use for at least two centuries, serving as cremation clothes, oil lamp wicks, and other textiles. However, commercial mining of this form of asbestos didn’t commence until the 1800s.
It is true, however, that the use and exportation of chrysotile has changed quite drastically over the years. The industry now only markets dense and non-friable materials in which the chrysotile fiber is “encapsulated in a matrix of either cement or resin.” These products include chrysotile-cement building materials, friction materials, gaskets and certain plastics. Before asbestos bans and warnings went into effect beginning in the mid 1970s, old products containing chrysotile asbestos were extremely friable, which means they crumbled easily with a little hand pressure and released large amounts of dust. That form of chrysotile asbestos can still be found in innumerable buildings around the world.
Chrysotile Products
About 90% of the world production of chrysotile is used in the manufacture of chrysotile-cement, in the form of pipes, sheets and shingles. Some 60 industrialized and developing nations use these asbestos-containing products due in part to their cost-effectiveness and durability. Other products that include chrysotile asbestos include those classified as “friction” products, such as brake shoes, disk pads, and clutches for automobiles as well as elevators brakes. Chrysotile may also be found in some textiles, plastics, rubber products, caulking, paper, roof sealants, and gaskets. Chrysotile fibers are also used in asphalt, and the roads in some countries – including parts of Canada – are paved with the material. Proponents of chrysotile claim that when mixed when asphalt, the material increases wear resistance without a loss of stability.
Canada says it opposes placing limits on the export of chrysotile asbestos — likely setting the stage for international efforts to list the mineral as a hazardous material to fail.The head of the Canadian delegation at a UN meeting made the statement after a consensus was starting to emerge to deem the mineral, a known carcinogen which is mined in Quebec. If chrysotile asbestos is listed on Annex III of the United Nations’ Rotterdam Convention, “Prior Informed Consent” would be required before countries such as Canada can export the mineral. That would allow importing would be informed of the hazards and could refuse to accept the potentially cancer-causing material if they believe they could not handle it safely.
Ukraine switched positions and indicated it could accept the hazardous listing. Canada’s intervention followed immediately after Ukraine’s announcement. It also came just after India, a major importer of Quebec asbestos, announced it, too, would support the listing. As with Canada at past meetings, India either opposed the listing or remained silent. Unless consensus among countries can be achieved, chrysotile asbestos will remain off Annex III, contrary to the recommendation of the UN convention’s scientific expert committee.
The convention’s expert scientific committee has repeatedly recommended that chrysotile asbestos, already banned in many countries, be placed on the list, but Canada split with industrialized countries in 2006 and 2008 by objecting to the listing. More than 200 scientists and organizations from around the world, including the Canadian Cancer Society and the Canadian Medical Association, have signed a letter urging the federal government to support the listing of chrysotile asbestos under the UN treaty.
Studies done in areas of Canada where chrysotile is mined – particularly Quebec – show that individuals who live in the mine areas have a greater incidence of developing an asbestos-related disease. And while the “new” form of encased chrysotile is certainly safer than what was previously used in commercial products, prolonged exposure remains a problem.
