Document DME6Q59jnNp0647VyL282m0XM

FILENAME: Flintkote (FLK) DATE: 1971 Oct 11 DOC#: FLK068 DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION: Meeting Minutes & Attendee List - Special General Meeting of the Quebec Asbestos Mining Association % `3 *<** - Esl'.lbit No. ^ 7 ./* %TS7L. Shannon K/rnagOiin ~ ncn. iol Reporter < r. 1 I X fc. J > o S ~ -- N- MINUTE! the s p e c i a l general m e e t i n g or the; QUE EEC ASBESTOS WINtI;y AS5CC TAT IQfj HELP ON OCTOBER 11th AMD i;th. 1971, AT THE E30 AnmnpR, -COLORADO s p r t a s , COLQRAOO MONDAY, OCTOBER iitn, 19?1 There were present Messrs.i W.W. Oughtred F. P. Smith J.R.M. Hutcheson R. J. Merrill M.C. Carpenter M.J. Messel Ph. Casgrain P.A. Filteau President Vice President N Director Director Oirector Director Genera 1. Counsel for the Association General Manager and Secretary There were also present:- Messra.t I.C. J.C. W.H. R.P. K.V. A. B. D,T, Campoell - Chairman or" the Legislation and Taxation Committee and of Public Relatione Committee Eby -- "Chairman of Industrial Relations Ccmmitt.- Foster - Chairman of Uniform Classification 4 Grading, and Technical Committee Gagnon - Chairman of Traffic Committee Lindell - Chairman of Occupational and Environmental Health Committee H. 8agenstos-e Carey-Canadian'ffinesTTmitad P. Carson - Asbestos Corporation Limited Colton - Johns-Manville Corporation c c - 2- Y. Couture G.J. Killian N .W. Hendry J.B, Jobe L.C. Piuze D. Poutiatine W.J.W. Smith W.l. VanDerbeek M. Dorais A.R. Hooker M. Prus J.D. Christian - Canadian Johns-Manville Co., Ltd - National Asbestos Mines Limited Canadian Johns-Manville Co. , Ltd - Johns-Manville Corporation - Lake Asbestos of Quebec Limited - Johns-Manville Corporation - Bell Asbestos Mines Limited - Johns-Manville Corporation - Bell Asbestos Mines Limited - Flintkoce Mines Limited - Carey-Canadian Mines Limited - Case.or Asbestos Corporation The President of the Association, 'jJ.W. Oughtred, acted as Chairman and P.A. filteau as Secretary of the meeting. The Chairman declared that a regular notice of meeting had been duly mailed to all the Directors of the Association and said notice was ordered to be entered at length in the minute book of the Associa ti on. There being a quorum, the Chairman declared the meeting duly constituted. The minutes of the Special General Meeting of the Association held on Mr.rch 19th and 20th, 1971, were duly approved. The Committee Chairmen were then requested to report, UNIFORM CLASSIFICATION & CRAPING, AND TECHNICAL COMMITTEE In hia report, the Chairman atreated among several points of interest the poaaibilities of the "Thermogravimetric Analysis" procedure (Eternit Kapella and Turner Newall Laboratories) to identify impuritie for certain end uses of asbestos fibres. c c - 3- Recent harohress-softness test evaluations conducted by C.l.P. Researcn confirm the opinion of the industry as to Crcuo 3 fibre ratings. The Asbestos Cement Producer Association has agreed to join again with the A.T.I. and Q.A.ffl.A. as sponsor of the next edition of' the manual of Testing Procedures for Chrysotile Asbestos fibre. INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS COMMITTEE Summarizing nis report, the Chc.rman observed that the Government had officially enacted new regulations for the storage and handling of explosives with which, it was felt, the mining Industry could live. The additional excense to the suppliers will very likely be reflected in the cost to users. As to the notice in the case of "Collective Dismissals", the C.C.T.ffl. has proposed to the Department of Labour and Manpower a revised regulation providing for the advance notice required by the Act in the case of a permanent termination of employment and, if temporary. a notice at the time that termination takes effect. The employer determines whether the layoff is permanent or temporary. In the case of the new Unemployment Insurance Act (Sill C-22S) the question of integrating the new U.I. Accident and Sickness benefits with existing private AiS Insurance benefits or other government programs remains to be solved. This will no doubt be an important point in the forthcoming labour negotiations. The Advisory Committee to the Workmen's Compensation Commission has recently recommended that the application of the present merit system (Art. 90, par. 3) be extended to all classea of employers who wish to take advantage of this system. On this premise the demerit system, as proposed by..the Workman's Compensation Commission, would operate as ----provided for.ln Art. 77.offthe;Workmen's Compensation Act and aoply -- -- to all classes. Ic c i sr-** .T*i a - 4 - Bill C-253, tabled in the -:jse of Commons on June 28, 1S71, propose:! that any employer wishing tr make a technological cha-ge must give j notice to the bargaining agent who may ask to commence collective bargaining for the purpose of revising the existing provisions. In other words, the Bill would grant the right to strike during a laboui agreement over a union-management dispute resulting from a technologi change. Such a prejudicial feature to the economic development of Industry has brought on the 'anistar of Labour protest from all employers associations throughout' Canada (C.ffl.A., C.P.D., Prov. ; Wining Assoc., etc.). An important discussion meeting on Eill C-2S3 { was held with the federal Authorities on October 10th. j In the case of the closure of flintkote operations, the other esbestc ; companies in the area have agreed to give du8 consideration to I applications of employees to be laid-off. v i TRAFFIC COMMITTEE The main points emphasized by the Chairman in his report can be j summarized as follows. ! Majority of ocean rates are scheouled to expire on March 31, 1972 and meetings will be scheduled with the various services in the near futu. I to determine 1972 transportation costs as early as possible. Both rail anc truck rates to St. Lawrence River Ports expire cn ! i December 31, 1971 and meetings with these services will be convened shortly to negotiate 1972 rate levels. Container inland rates have not been subjected to an increase since 1969, which would indicate higher transportation costs for 1972. U.S. Railways will again in 1972 attempt to get increased.revenues to offset labor demands and higher operating costs through assessment of a rate .increase on^intarnational'Tsil irreveTnants' effective January I 1, 1972j co'upled with a further increase scheduled for April 1 19-1 MflQE. c - s - The Stevedoring Firm at the Port of Three Rivers has been successful in controlling nominal charges on warehousing space and has also permitted reasonable free time at the port prior to vessel loading. These arrangements could be seriously affected and result in increase charges, if the fJational Harbours Board decides tc operate these sheds on a more strict transit basis. Increased charges could direct tonnage to other St. Lawrence River Ports which would not be located in such advantageous proximity to the Asbestos industry. Indications are that all commodities will face increased transportait costs during the 1972 shipping season and the Traffic Committee there fore anticipates continued activity to finalize negotiations with bot: inland and ocean carriers. LEGISLATION AND TAXATION CCnwiTTEE The Chairman reviewed briefly the ajor areas of change in Canadian Tax Policy, proposed in Bill C-259, which would affect the Wining Industry. Under the new system, th9 overall tax picture for mining companies should not be very much changed. further action i3 being take.- to broaden the definition of expenditures eligible for acclrt depreciation and earned depletion. Bill C-256, the Competition Act, introduced on June 29tn by Hon. Ba^-sford will be reviewed at public hearings during fiovember. This new legislation is designed to prevent monopolies or trusts.-from___, limiting competition In business. It makes a criminal offense out of various restrictive or unfair practices and provides for a tribunal to rule on complex economic matter such as company mergers which may lead to monopolies. The proposed legislation is being much criticizes by business men who argue that the government is interfering in privt enterprise. As a result the bill will quite liksly be shelved until 1973. " ` . 6 Counsel has attended the First hearings on Sill 48 which were adjour.* aFtsr a one-day sitting to October 11th, A serious point oF content; which raised considerable opposition is the non-availability oF the "assessment handbook", to be introduced later by regulation. It is Feared the contents might aFFect the generally accepted interpretatic oF the Act, especially as regards mining facilities and related real estate. Counsel plans to watch developments'very closely, since he expects to make representations for several parties on this proposed legislation. Agreement is also expected relative to an amendme-: to Art. 206 of the Quebec Wining Act submitted at a meeting of the Canadian Bar Association by a representative of SOQUEW in the matter of unregis tered mining right. After discussion between the Chairman of sub i ject Committee and the proposer, Counsel feels that he can redraft the^amendment to the mutual satisfaction of all parties concerned. ( i PUBLIC RELATIONS -, -... Gnly the highlights of the report prepared by the Director of Information Services were reviewed by the Chairman. a) Increasing acceptance by the employees and the general public f of the new french-English presentation of the Producer seems evident from comments received. b) The English-French_technical lexicon is progressing slowly in search for greater quality. c) The poor headlines accorded Dr. McDonald's report by the C a n a d i a n news media was deplored. Nevertheless it carried the message that chrysotile asbestos fibre constitutes little hazard to mining pro duction workers and virtually none to the general public.. -iAn. effort should be made to demonstrate the beneficial uses and applications of chrysotile in protecting the lives of people, its economic impor tance, to the country a n d H h e rmeasurestaken to suppress any ill effects from dust exposure. c c - 7- ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL COPimITTEC following a discussion on the question of selling and giving tailings in place or fresh run-of-mill tailing for use off company properties, it was agreed that the Committee would make a survey of present company practices and policies concerning the distribution of tailings and would report on what is involved in phasing out present practice. This should allow everyone to give full consideration to the matter. NEW BUSINESS Visi t_o f_pri_y_._Col dbloomi_Minis ter__for_ the_QualitY_of_ Environment^The above meeting has bsan scheduled for October 21st, at 4:00 p.m. in the Board Room of the Asbestos Corporation Office in Thetford Wines. Dr. Coldbloom will be accompanied by his deputy-minister Dr. J.,0. Bundock. The program would consist of informing the Minister on the environmental control policies and measures taken by the Asbestos Industry, the research sponsored by Q.A-.M.A.-on the biological effects of asbestos and methods to improve duat suppression, etc. It was agreed that the Chairman of the' O.E.H. Committee would monitor the meeting. Paper (with slidea) to be given by J.R.M, Hutcheson on Environmental Control in the asbestos industry and Or. G.W. Wright to make a general review of the asbestos and health problem since 1950. Recent dust measurements taken in the air surrounding Thetford Wines and Asbestos could also be given. Amount of moneys spent for research on asbestos and health could also be stated. It would seem appropriate that each Company be represented by two officials. Alao to be asked to attend werei D r s C a r t i e r , Grainger, Pslnar and Wright, Ph. Casgrain,_Counsel, Karl V. Lindall and P.A. filteau. The group to meet at 12:30 p.m. of aame day at the Bell Asbestoe Staff House to discus* the proceedings of the meeting. ma \ / i / n' ,'.l c y.&. S&?3s - 8- EISiiD,:.PES25?E.5i 197 I:- The next Meeting of the Directors of the Association mill be held at 10:00 a.m. Sunday, December 5, 1571, at the Chateau Frontenac, Quebec City. At 2:30 p.m. mill follow a meeting of the Executive of the I.O.E.H. and at 6:30 p.m., tne Directors and tneir associates will act as hosts at a reception and dinner in the Chateau Frontenac extended to Government officials and representatives of various associations and institutions. CQi~i~ENT5 ON GCNCnAL BUSINESS CONDITIONS "Business in the O.S.A. is good, but controls make planning difficul 8uilding products industry is operating at close to capacity." Trend in housing and industrial starts is upward (l,8S0,00CX> and in general asbestos-cement pipe business is doing very well. "As a result of the Nixon freeze on wages and prices,, labour is expected to be quite militant and one can foresee a period of discussion and arguments." The 10/6 surtax should not affect great extent, except indirectly which are seriously hurt by said is very strong. the Canadian fibre business to any in the ability to sell to countries surcharge. The short fibre business "The long term forecast in the fibre and pipe business is encouragin but industry must show leadership to meet customer demand." In the U.K., the present depressed conditions are expected to continu for another six months; people are looking for some sign of recovery and ara quite concerned about 1972. Buyers a re cautious, abating____ monetary.problems;r.to'_be*aolvedr*cfnore"stability .muat b e \ s h o w n . -- __ In certain cases, business volume is ahead of last year or rioht on target as per budget and plans at beginning of year. 1572 according to surveys by architects offices indicate increased commercial projects as compared to 1971. In the cperating end, however, environmental and ecological problems are consuming considerable time. . The excellent performance of one company in 1971, possibly 2C% over.. 1970, has promoted same to gearing operations to work at 95^ of capacity in 1972. It is feared, however, that radicals are taking over in labour unions. The floor tile fibre market has been very good in 197 i. grade fibre business should also be on par with 1970. /tedium In view of air-pollution control problems, one mining operation is seriously considering changing over to wet processing cf tailings, i.e., a tailings pond. Outlook for spinning fibres appears strong fpr 1972. In Europe, the people seem to have a p r o b l e m and to believe that without a have a atable economy at home. It is U.S. will devaluate by some 5^. good understanding of tha U.S. strong U.S. economy, they can't the general feeling that the In the case of Japan, the yen has gone up 13 to 15^, which is what tha U.S. wishes. c - 10 - With the present market outlook, it would seam proper to recommend that tne Asbestos Hill operations be conducted at a moderate rate for the first year, so as to take the pressure off the market. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, the meeting then adjourned. CERTIflED CORRECT Secretary Cha irna n C c I -- >* '9- wimutes or thc s p e c i a l cemeral .tesiting or the: QUESEC AS5ESTCS KIMIMG ASSOC IATI Of! hCLD ON OCTOBER 11th AND 12th, 1971, AT THE BRQAOrCQ.R. ZOLGRflCO SPRINGS. COLORADO TUESDAY, OCTOSE.R 12th, 1971 In addition to the Directors and their Associates no 'tended the meeting of Monday, October 11th, Dr. George ti'. Wright, Chairman of.the Scientific Committee of the I.O.E.H., as present andparticipated in the discussion. After calling the meeting to order, the President, W.'JU. Oughtred, invited K. v. Lindell, Chairman of the Occupational and Environmental Health Committee to chair the meeting. Reviewing the recent publicity on asbestos and health, the Chairman expressed his disappointment as to the headlines and comments of the Press following the news release on Dr. ItcDonald's report. The Chairman reviewed briefly the highlights of the Ottawa meeting or the biological effects._of asbestos which he attended September.^. 8th, 1971 (see report of Dr. 'P. Pelnar re same). There were 2A ~i? people present, 12 from Industry and 12 from Government and other sectors. There seemed to be a lack of knowledge on the part of Government people. Dr. McDonald's report was fully discussed and commented by several members of his team. Hlr. Lindell pointed out that he objected very strongly to a statement made by Dr. Buchwald to the effect that the T.L.V. in community air should be one (l) fibre per cc (fpcc) for which, in his opinion, thers was no aclen- tific basis. - c c 2 Dr. A.J, de l/illiers was appointed Head of the National Committee on the Biological Effects of Asbestos. It mas emphasized that the Committee should continue to operate with adequate industry participation. Dr. Pelnar attended an International Symposium on the Identificatio and Measurement of Er.vironmr-tal Pollutants which was held in Ottawa June 14th to tr,= I7t.-., 1971. His report shows that there were 700 participants and although some of the presentations were aimeo at promoting tne monitoring of pollutants in the air, no global program was recommended at this time. Another meeting was held in Finland on the Shipbuilding Industry. The Swedish delegation presented a paper which was damaging to the industry since it concluded against the use of asbestos in shipbuilding. A Russian speaker dealt with generalities and .. explained that he had no statistics because there was no problem in his country, since people were moved as soon as affected by dust. At this time, the Chairman called on Dr. Wright. DR. GCQRCC ID. WRIGHT In his usual masterful way Dr. Wright made a tour of the horizon of the asb&stos and health issue. In his notes - copy of which will be'-*forwarded late<r7-'"Dj!i!''Wright*:commented rohi ^ a) the status of.the research projects presently sponsored by the Institute; b) his recent trips to Finland and Bucharest (Romania); c) the present trend of the Federal Government in U.S., in the application of Workmen's Compensation`policies; d) Pressing problems,'such as Occupational T.L.V.'s, emission controls on air-borne asbestos by tne E.P.A., etc., referring wi th emphasis to the recent publication of tn= ^etinnaj Academy cf Sciences c.n "Asbestos, the Meed for and feasibility of Air Pollution Controls", copy of whic1' publication is attached for your perusal. finally, Dr. Wright submitted that he would like-to prepare a list of research projects and priorities covering work needod to be pursued in order to cover reasonaoly well several important \ aspects of the asbestos and health problem which had been ignored so far. To allow Dr. Wrignt to accroach, on a practical basis, peoole who would likely be disposed to carry out research on certain-, pressing problems, it was resolved that: