Document 4v4p50N6G3Y2pZLjJ9D47kELe

FILE NAME Quebec Asbestos Mining Association QAMA DATE 1977 Oct DOC QAMA151 DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION QAMA Bulletin Vol 1 No. 6 Government's asbestos policy No one questions the right of the Qu^'becGovernment to adopt policies of its choice in respect of economic development and particularly in the field of natural resources provid- ed that in the process the funda- mental rights of others are respect- ed Industry cooperation The Quebec Asbestos mining pro- ducers welcome the decision of the Government to set up proper means of consultation and cooperation between the State and the Industry so as to maximise the results of the efforts of all concerned and thereby foster optimum development of manufacturing and use of asbestos products in Qu^'becwhile the same time promoting additional industrial and technological research and helping resolve problems of health and hygiene at work For many years the asbestos mining companies were alone in giving tangible interest and concern to such matters as is demonstrated by the impressive work accomplished by the Institute of Occupational and Environmental Health founded in 1966 by the Qu^'becAsbestos Min- ing Association by the investment of millions of dollars to improve working conditions and the environment by the commissioning of the first indepth study on the possibilities of manufacturing finished asbestos products in Qu^'becand by the research programs carried out under the auspices of the Associa- tion Equal partners The asbestos mining industry which has been advocating a dynamic cooperation between the mining sector and the public authorities feels that in these areas the initiative of the Government offers new perspectives towards the orderly evolution of relations between State and industry Such cooperation could well produce most constructive and fruitful results provided however that it is founded on equality of partnership on mutual trust and good faith and provided also that the State does not unduly take advantage of its position to change the ground rules between the partners The Qu^'becGovernment can count on the cooperation of the Qu^'bec asbestos mining producers in the pursuit of realistic and financially viable objectives and in the search for and the activation of programs of action towards promoting the economic development of Qu^'bec Questionable decision As for the proposal of the Government to acquire a controlling interest in Asbestos Corporation Limited it does not appear founded on an objective evaluation of the best means to insure the development of the asbestos industry for the greater benefit of all Quebecers The asbestos mining producers of Qu^'becquery the advisability of such a decision costly for the Qu^'bec taxpayers generating uncertainty and demoralizing private enterprise In addition this move is not conducive to the creation of new jobs nor to the improvement of productivity and is not likely to contribute to the betterment of Qu^'bec'seconomy The asbestos mining companies will not remain indifferent to the fate imposed on one of them by the Government and along with financial and business circles will be following very closely the way in which the Government proceeds to implement its plan and ensure conditions both humanly and financially fair and equitable he ent's cy tos policy as announced , Yves B^'rub^' ent agreements with the mining ompanies Asbestos and the economic revival This policy founded essentially on e development of primary and secndary levels of the asbestos sector onstitutes one of the short and longrm pieces of the Qu^'bec overnment's economic revival proram The Government feels that S policy should constitute an imortant economic growth factor for e asbestos regions such as the Estern Townships and northwest u^'bec The Government and private industry The Government wants its policy be indicative of its current option Oncerning foreign private enterpri- fl The Government statoc that it A few thoughts by Minister B^'rub^' on the role of the industry After having thought about the asbestos problem at length we came to certain conclusions On the one hand if the asbestos industry is currently prosperous it is largely due to the fact that the companies have developed needs for a product which a priori one hundred years ago had no usefulness as such Therefore it should be recognized that the industry has learned how to develop its potential through fairly rational and planned marketing has learned how to avoid econo- mic fluctuations and also has learned how to create needs We do not feel that we should try to build something by writing off what existed previously but on the contrary we should try to the best of our abilities to achieve some- thing along with the industry on asbestos and health Asbestos is no more toxic than fibreglass asbestos is less toxic than P.C.V. vinyl polychloride while being substitute products Asbestos is a product which can be handled safely with the appropriate precautions on the future of asbestos We are not the Arabs of asbes- Asbestos mining producers in Qu^'bec Manville Manville is the largest producing company in Qu^'becIt employs 2695 people at its Asbestos mining and manufacturing facilities The Jeffrey Mine operated by Canadian Manville is the largest open asbestos deposit in the western world Grade 4 6 and 7 fibres are mainly mined there Mined by various producers since 1881 the Jeffrey Mine was purchased in 1918 by its current owners Canadian Johns- Manville whose production capacity is 000 tons per year is a subsidiary of Johns ville Corp. grade 3 fibres employs 2 210 people in Quebec General Dynamics Corporation is the major shareholder of Asbestos Corporation with 54,6 of shares Lake Asbestos Lake Asbestos Company of Black Lake has been mining the Black Lake mine since 1958 In 1973 it purchased the Nationale mine near Thetford Mines Today it employs 1 050 people at its two mines and mills Its annual = production capacity is 260 000 tons Lake Asbestos of the Asarco Group is an important producer of 4 5 and 6 fibre grades Asbestos Corporation Asbestos Corporation was founded in 1926 following an amalgamation of several companies Today in the Thetford Mines area it owns the under- ground King Beaver mine the open mines British Canadian 1 and 2 and the Normandy mine whose ore reserve is now exhausted The annual production capacity of Asbestos Corpo- ration at the Thetford facilities is 230 000 tons Since 1972 the Corporation has been mining ore at a deposit at Asbestos Hill in New Qu^'bec Canadian Known previously as Qu^'bec Asbestos Corporation CareyCanadian founded in 1955 carried out its first asbestos ship- ments in 1958 from its East Broughton deposit Today it employs 550 people and its annual production capacity is 230 000 tons Canadian -- subsidiary of Jim Walter Corporation produces short fibres particularly grade 7 Bell Asbestos Mines | Bullakin ASBESTOS AND MANY USES Papers and felts Qu^'becchrysotile asbestos is used in producing several products which adopt its exceptional features of incombustibility insulation soundproofing tension corrosion and acid resistance An inert element asbestos gives these products a high level of dimensional stability an essential quality in the manufacture of certain papers for specific applications such as gasket papers pipe wrapping flooring and roofing fets A wide range Asbestos papers represent 6 to % of the world's consumption of average asbestos fibres The variety of papers is quite large and in addition to the already listed uses also includes commercial papers millboards corrugated papers and various other specialized papers used in insulating applications for household appliances Major markets The major market for asbestos papers is in roofing and flooring felts applications Roofing felt is used primarily to cover flat roofs of large buildings The North American auto industry uses resistant gasket paper whereas pipe wrapping is mainly used in covering underground and underwater pipelines where they protect against corrosion The sole Canadian producer of asbestos papers Kingsey Fails Papers is located in Qu^'becin the Eastern Townships Qu^'becproduction When the three Lemaire brothers Bernard Laurent and Alain owners of Papiers Cascade of Kingsey Falls decided in 1972 to found a new company with Canadian Johns- Manville Asbestos Company they had no idea how rapidly their indus- try would become one of the most important producers of asbestos papers in North America Their highly automated plant which now employs 52 people has been operating at full capacity since September seven days a week and hours per day It should produce more than 33 000 tons of paper in 1977 Last year production was 000 tons and forecasting that production remains the same it should yield from 45 000 to 50 000 tons in 1978 Most of the production 85 is exported to the United States Relatively to the asbestos content the paper is produced according to clients specifications Eight different products The plant manufactures eight different categories of papers of which roofing felt constitutes 80 of the Photo at above left asbestos millboards whichare often used as fireproof doors and insulators They contain 97 asbestos Bottom left photo bags of raw asbestos are thrown in a vat where they are mixed with water and chemical produts a basic mixture in the production of asbestos paper Photo at upper right pipe wrapping peer is covered with asphalt before being shipped to Canadian markets Right lower photo rollsol asbestos paper ready to be shipped to world markets company's production Other products manufactured are pipe wrapping used mainly for scale projects such as construction of pipelines millboards and comme cial papers used as insulators by manufacturers of household ap- pliances inch thick millboards contain the largest proportion of asbestos 97 They are used as fireproof doors and are also used to insulate building and plant furnace rooms The process Roofing felt which has an 85 asbestos content is covered with asphalt for Canadian clients and is exported in raw form to other mar- kets The paper is made up of several layers of an asbestos mixture runned through a series of giant cylinders before arriving 10 the dryers from where it comes out at rate of 260 min Production is diversified and varies often daily according to the type of paper in demand in order to meet market fluctuations quite important for several products namely pipe wrapping whose sales depend to a great extent on the im- plementation of large projects Wet process production are used at the Kingsey Falls plant to avoid dust emission The asbestos utilized in the paper production is emptied directly into a water and chemicals vat The protective wrap- ping of asbestos is not removed and the mixture circulates in watertight tubes before arriving at the cylinders section All torn paper is removed and immediately recycled in the aqueous mixture to avoid contamunation of the areas Expansion Expansion work is currently being carried out at the plant to add 9 000 sq ft to the existing surface area to allow installation of new equip- ment for future development Management of Kingsey Falls Papers is aiming specifically at developing the market for roofing tell whose qualities of durability and uninflammability are often ignored by Canadian buyers The Sor^sreport The report on Phase I of the study of the potentialities for manufacturing asbestos products in Qu^'bec concludes that more = thorough studies should be contmued on the economic profitability of three types of asbestos papers roofing felts gasket papers and pipe wrapping According to the Sores report 25 of total Canadian consumption of roofing felt occurs in Qu^'becand with a well orchestrated marketing program aimed at improving the product in relation to users needs and a market promotion asbestos- content roofing felt should seize a farger part of the total asphaltimpregnated roofing felt market As far as pipe wrapping is concerned Sor^s feels it is difficult to make predictions for the future of the market 4 5 LBulleti_n| Asbestos the best fire insurance fire resistance in 1932 during con- struction of the Queen Mary different types of building materials were experimented on Experimen- tal cabins made of asbestos pro- ducts withstood the flames longer For several years thick asbestos panels have been used in shipbuild- ing where a fire could create dra- Where fire protection is concern- matic consequences in short time ed the roof of a building must be paid particular attention If neighbouring buildings catch fire it can Molalized aluminum asbestos clothing protects workers against extreme heat Ceilings doors and corridors are covered with panels whose asbestos content varies between 30 to 40 be dangerously exposed to sparks carried by the wind During the fires which ravaged the California forests last summer several houses located near the blazes went up ini flames but most of those that had asbestos roofs were spared departments airports and several Industrial sectors Asbestos This is a good example of how the use of proof construction mate- rials can be a preventive measure which stops or slows down the fire from spreading saves lives and reduces material losses caused by fires In 1975 69 881 fires were re- corded in Canada causing 822 deaths and material damage amounting to 416 814 403 Several deaths are at- tributed to highly inflammable de- crepit buildings and properties However asbestos products are used mainly In the construction materials which explains why ascement represents more consumption than 70 of the world's of Qu^'becproduced libre Asbestos also enters in the manufacture of tiles shingles flat or corrugated sheets and asbestos sheets - all products which contribute to fire prevention due to their incom- bustibility According to its thick- ness and composition an asbestos- Increased protection Asbestos sheets molded or prefabricated are often used especially in Europe to cover columns and beams of public buildings An assembly of this type can often provide up to two hours protection to a building infrastructure in case of fire Asbestos tiles often used suspended ceilings efficiently withstand flames according to the thickness of the product and sus- maintain pension system which must its rigidity under intense heat conditions In Canada the use of asbestos- cement product will withstand in- cement boards and sheets in the Preventive standards tense flames for periods of 11 to 30 minutes For example a \ construction field with the exception of industrial projects is rela- Nowadays new standards and re- quirements in force in the construction sector regarding fire protec- important tion have led to an market for asbestos products es- thick asbestos sheet will withstand flames for more than 27 minutes Thicker sheets and panels are tively recent whereas in Europe these materials have been used for a long time in commercial buildings plants schools and apartment build- ings pecially for asbeslos pro- ducts Due mainly to its insulation and primarily used in furnace rooms of large buildings to prevent unsuitable heat dispersion Asbestos sheets can be incorporated in floor structures where they prevent flames from hcat resistant properties asbestos today is used in the composition of Over 000 different products Thus insulating asbestos plays a role in electrical wires and a large number of household appliances where it contributes to eliminate sources of hires Asbestos is also often used in the confection of fireproof curtains for theatres and cinemas It enters in the manufacturing of products and equipment found in municipal fire Conclusive tests ASPM Submitted to test which classifies fire hazards as compiled by the Underwriters Laboratories asbestos obtain- contribuon ed the following results flame spreading if energy contribution to supply of flame nil smoke pro- duction nil Asbestos materials have been the object of numerous tests and experiments aimed at improving their spreading whereas asbestos sheets in addition to their incom- bustibility can be adapted for movable parlitions they are light un- inflammable and aesthetic Considering all the advantages of using asbestos products for fire prevention durability and aesthetic qualities constructors architects and engineers should without a doubt anticipate using a larger number of asbestos products inasmuch as there is a strong desire to develop the manufacturing of asbestos products in Quebec 6 Ambitious fibre and researchers feel that the use of a wel process in addition to decreasing dust emission would permit to recuperate a greater amount of short fibres more concerned with energy conservation The project also will deal with two types of existing thermic and acoustic insulators asbestos felt and an asbestos and cement bas- ed porous material in order to research program at University of Sherbrooke The chemical composition Mr Cossette will work jointly with five researchers on a research project dealing with a new theory regarding the biological effects of asbestos a theory which stresses the fibre's structure rather than its length Researchers will attempt to verify certain scientific observations which imply other causes of either a morphological or even a chemical perfect their manufacturing techniques and reduce costs As for felt whose properties are more interest- ing than mineral wool attempts at accelerating the drying method and decreasing the processing cost are being undertaken As for asbestoscement sheets whose major market IS in gyproc covering Professor Aitain and his team will try to discover methods of accelerating its manufacturing stages in order to make more competitive nature than those that have been The University of Sherbrooke has just begun a vast pluridisciplinary research program which will call for investments in the order of 5 millon over the next five years Under the direction of Professor Marc Lalancette the research program will deal with three specific aspects of asbestos mining technology health economics An information support module will assist researchers by collecting all basic documentation necessary for research in the three fields This data bank under the supervision of Roger B. Bernier will be available lo Quebec industries and researchers interested in Asbestos 41 projects The program is made up of specifications for 41 research projects Six are to be conducted this year five by the technology unit In order to carry out these projects the Qu^'bec Ministry of Natural Resources has made a 350 000 grant to the University while Environment Canada has contributed 7.000 7.000 The technology unit under the direction ol Marcel Cossette will study the potential of mining short asbestos fibre using a wet process The majority of mining companies use the dry process to recover the known to date Professor Marc Lalancette pointed out that greater knowledge of the chemical composition of the fibre's surface Electrical insulators The University is already conducting within the framework of a would lead to a better understanding of the pathogenic action of asbestos program which was implemented some time ago a project aimed at Concerning examination of the converting asbestos residue into chemical composition of the fibre's surface the second electrical circuit insulating matenal The University's hypothesis is focus of the health research that production of such elements program Mr Lalancette added that could become quite competitive with although asbestos properties are well known the study of its pure existing products made usually to a large extent of resin The process structure IS hardly developed developed by Professor Lalancette More advanced research on the is patented in Canada and the United chemical and physical composition of the fibre's surface would lead to greater understanding and rationali- zation of its properties he stated States A profitability study will determine the success potential of the product on the market Furthermore this research could over the long term uncover new applications for asbestos Insulators Trails and paths in The use of asbestos residue the construction of trails and paths has also been entrusted to the techno- Two other projects under the drrection of Professor Claude Aitain deal with the manufacturing of thermic and acoustic asbestosbased insulators and with the construction of trails and paths using asbestos residue Environment Can- ada is supporting this project in par- ticular According to the researchers concerned with insulators the insulat ing properties of asbestos products are of primary importance at time when society is more and logy unit The behaviour of this material on a foot trail including the degree of asbestos dust emis- sion is currently being studied at the campus of the University Finally Professor Lalancette will continue his research on the extraction of magnesium from asbestos residue Now in its experimental slage it is hoped that the current research will allow recovery of melal in the form of magnesium carbonate or oxide two products in demand in the chemical and ceramic Industries 7 Expansion program at Bell Asbestos Mines Postes Canada & Post Canada | t Postage paid Port Dare Third Troisi^me class classe 683 Montreal P.Q. Bell Asbestos Mines Ltd a member of the Turner & Newall Group is investing a further 3.7 million in its facilities at Thetford Mines in order to increase its production of fibre by 28 This follows the successful completion of a 10 million mill modernization program and the installation of 1,7 million unit which has improved tailings disposal facilities The company expects increased profitability as a result of lower operating unit costs when the project is completed Bell Asbestos Mines Ltd. facilities at Thetford Mines Increased flexibility The current erection of a 2,2 million wet ore bin with a capacity of 000 tons will enable greater operating flexibility between mining and ore processing activities The mine will be operated on a shift instead of an shift a week basis On the other hand 1,5 million is to be spent on improvements underground and on modification to the crushing and drying stages of the mill enabling to process the in- creased volume of ore to be min- ed Approximately fifty will be created following of the projects new jobs completion Anticipated demand The expansion program was drawn up in accordance with the anticipated needs to increase production in order to meet the demand for fibre in the grades used in asbestos building materials and pipes for which the market is forecasted to increase in the late 1970's and early 1980's The demand for asbestos fibre has substantially progressed on markets in the Far East Central and South America the Middle East and Africa It should be noted that Atlas As- bestos Company Ltd. of Montreal another subsidiary of Turner & Newall has been manufacturing ascement building materials and pipes in Qu^'becfor 29 years and has capacity available for an increase in its present rate of production It is studying other new projects which would utilize asbestos fibre and will invest in them if they promise a satisfactory return Bulletin This BULLETIN is published by the Qu^'bec Asbestos Mining Association box 1643. Station B Montr^'alH3B 3L3 The Post Office Department in Ottawa has authorized postage paid in cash and forwarding of the publication by third class mail