Anti-asbestos advocates in Sarnia are thrilled the federal government is moving to ban all products containing the dangerous substance by 2018.
Victims of Chemical Valley spokesperson Sandy Kinart has been pushing for a ban for 15 years.
"I'm ecstatic, this has been a long time coming," says Kinart. "It's great news."
The comprehensive ban is designed to include construction materials and brake pads that currently use the cancer-causing agent.
Kinart says the legislation will help protect future generations.
"I just look forward to a huge change, I look forward to a future where asbestos is banned in Canada and worldwide so that our communities and workers can be safe," she says. "Hopefully in the future our grandchildren and great grandchildren won't have to suffer from these terrible diseases that have devastated the community."
Kinart says four of her family members, including her father, have died from asbestos-related mesothelioma and a cousin has markers on her lungs as a secondary victim.
Sarnia Mayor Mike Bradley calls the ban a big victory for people in the community who have worked hard for the past 15 years to stop the export of asbestos, and stop its use in Canada.
"I'm delighted but it's with mixed feelings," says Bradley. "Too many people lost their lives over the years when this exposure could have been stopped decades ago."
Science Minister Kirsty Duncan made the announcement in Ottawa Thursday morning, saying the government also plans to change the national building code.
The government says the comprehensive ban on asbestos will include:
- creating new regulations that ban the manufacture, use, import and export of asbestos under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999, the legislative framework that protects people from the risks associated with hazardous substances such as asbestos;
- establishing new federal workplace health and safety rules that will drastically limit the risk of people coming into contact with asbestos on the job;
- expanding the current online list of asbestos-containing buildings owned or leased by the Government of Canada;
- working in collaboration with our provincial and territorial partners to change the national, provincial and territorial building codes to prohibit the use of asbestos in new construction and renovation projects across Canada;
- updating our international position regarding the listing of asbestos as a hazardous material based on Canada's domestic ban before next year's meeting of parties to the Rotterdam Convention, an international treaty involving more than 150 countries that support listing asbestos as a hazard; and
- raising awareness of the health impacts of asbestos to help reduce the incidence of lung cancer and other asbestos-related diseases.
