Exporting death made in Quebec

Our plain-English summary of Exporting death made in Quebec, by G. Paradis (Canadian Journal of Public Health = Revue Canadienne de Santé Publique, 2010).

The study

• Author: G. Paradis
• Journal: Canadian Journal of Public Health = Revue Canadienne de Santé Publique
• Published: 2010;101(2):112
• Type of article: Editorial
• Language: French
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

In plain English

This was an editorial, not a research study, written by the Scientific Editor of the Canadian Journal of Public Health. It reported no new data. The author argued that the Quebec government's decision to continue exporting chrysotile asbestos was a public health tragedy for Canada and the rest of the world. The author stated that over 40 countries, including the European Union, had banned chrysotile. The author also stated that Quebec's chrysotile went mostly to low and middle income countries, particularly in Asia, where it was used mostly in cement, and that workers there had no protective equipment. The author cited a current estimate of 100,000 annual deaths among exposed workers and expected this to rise, given latency periods of 40 or more years for many asbestos-related diseases. The author said the government funded the Chrysotile Institute, which the author called a front for the industry. The author also said Canada had prevented chrysotile from being included in the Rotterdam Convention, and that Quebec's asbestos exports to India alone were worth over 400 million dollars per year. The author called the decision wrong, unethical and indecent.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: Editorial (opinion piece by the journal's Scientific Editor); no original research or data
• Who was studied: No study population. The editorial discusses workers and citizens in low and middle income countries, particularly in Asia, who receive Quebec's chrysotile exports
• Exposure: Chrysotile asbestos exported from Quebec, used mostly in cement for the construction industry
• Main results:
  • Not a study finding: the author stated that over 40 countries, including the European Union, had banned chrysotile
  • Not a study finding: the author stated that workers using the exported asbestos had no protective equipment
  • Not a study finding: the author cited a current estimate of 100,000 annual deaths among exposed workers and expected the toll to rise, given latency of 40 or more years for many asbestos-related diseases
  • Not a study finding: the author noted a latency period of 40 or more years for many asbestos-related diseases
  • Not a study finding: the author stated that the government invests hundreds of thousands of dollars in the Chrysotile Institute, which the author described as a front for the industry
  • Not a study finding: the author stated that Canada prevented chrysotile from being included in the Rotterdam Convention
  • Not a study finding: the author stated that Quebec's asbestos exports to India alone were worth over 400 million dollars per year
• The authors' conclusion: The author concluded that Quebec's decision to continue exporting chrysotile asbestos was a public health tragedy for Canada and the world, and was wrong, unethical and indecent

Topics

The National Library of Medicine indexes this study under subjects our site covers: Chrysotile.

Related studies

• Ban all production and export of chrysotile asbestos — G. Paradis (2010)
• Quebec stands firm on asbestos exports despite growing controversy — L. Eggertson (2010)
• Asbestos poisons World Trade Organization atmosphere — L. Kazan-Allen (2001)
• Canada accused of hypocrisy over asbestos exports — T. Kirby (2010)
• South Africa's export trade in asbestos: demise of an industry — J.S. Harington, N.D. McGlashan, et al. (2010)
• Re: Call for an International Ban on Asbestos: Trust me, I'm a doctor — M. Greenberg (2000)

Browse more research in Canadian Journal of Public Health = Revue Canadienne de Santé Publique, or return to medical research.