Casale Monferrato Council Signs ‘Pact with the Devil’ Over Asbestos Contamination

Posted on December 19, 2011 by Steven Kazan

It’s a good thing the mayor and town council of Casale Monferrato, Italy, weren’t presiding over the Nuremberg Trials following World War II, as it’s now clear that these individuals care little about serving justice to the parties responsible for severe crimes.

Reports indicate the town council, led by Mayor Giorgio Demezzi, has decided to accept a deal referred to by many as a “pact with the devil.” The deal involves an 18 million euro settlement offer from former asbestos executive Stephen Schmidheiny, who is on trial for his role in the asbestos contamination caused by the Eternit factory.

According to Laurie Kazan-Allen, the Coordinator of International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS), the council’s decision to accept the settlement was made more than two weeks before Schmidheiny’s deadline of December 31. A verdict in the case was scheduled to be handed down on February 13, 2012.

Church authorities back asbestos victims

The news of the settlement, which will reportedly protect Schmidheiny from liability in this case and any future asbestos transgressions in the town, has hit asbestos victims and their families hard.

A number of groups, from trade unionists to church officials, have expressed their support for these victims and publicly denounced the decision by the town council allowing Schmidheiny to skirt the ramifications of the legal system.

Kazan-Allen noted a spokesperson for the social department of the Church Dioceses said church authorities had “asked the Lord to give those who govern the City of Casale the courage and the judgement to pursue the common good, which is never the sum total of individual good or balancing the books, but something greater and more noble.”

Politicians choose euros over justice

The speed with which the Casale Monferrato town council and mayor accepted the settlement, coupled with the fact that they reportedly refused to show victims a draft of the proposal, suggests these politicians were blinded by the substantial sum of money.

Such a move comes at the expense of asbestos victims, many of whom have died as a result of illnesses such as lung cancer, asbestosis or malignant mesothelioma, a rare form of cancer. Many others are still suffering from the diseases, with treatment options limited due to the fact that diagnoses often occur too late.

As Kazan-Allen puts it, Casale Monferrato has accepted Schmidheiny’s “blood money,” failing to see the “human tragedy” that has occurred right in front of their eyes.

Some Conservative Canadian Lawmakers Question Asbestos Position

Posted on November 21, 2011 by Steven Kazan

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper

Exposure to asbestos causes malignant mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer. This is a fact that has been proven for nearly 50 years and is accepted by virtually every medical professional on the planet, but that hasn’t stopped some Canadian officials from claiming the naturally occurring substance can be used safely.

However, a growing number of Conservative members of Parliament in Canada have been backing away from the position of Prime Minister Stephen Harper and other officials that chrysotile asbestos is safe, according to The Canadian Press.

The news source reports that the Conservatives have solidly backed Harper throughout his time in office and while there has not yet been a major eruption over asbestos, it appears as if that may be changing.

Fissures form among Tories

According to the news provider, the first sign of a split among the Conservatives came in early November when five Tories abstained from a New Democratic Party vote to ban the export of asbestos.

More recently British Columbia MP Mark Warawa organized a meeting between Conservative lawmakers and the Chrysotile Institute – an asbestos industry organization – that saw the legislators ask pointed questions of asbestos backers.

Alberta Conservative MP Jim Hillyer said the purpose of the meeting was to gather information.

“We ask questions so that we can make decisions that we feel are in the best interest of Canada, so it certainly wasn’t a love-fest where we were making strategies with the asbestos industry or the chrysotile industry,” Hillyer told the news source. “But at the same time we weren’t there to attack them and lambaste them, we were just there to get some information.”

Effects of asbestos undeniable

Since the mid-1960s it has been an accepted fact in the medical community that exposure to asbestos is responsible for the development of asbestosis and malignant mesothelioma, a rare and deadly form of cancer that attacks the thin membrane that lines the chest, abdomen and many of the body’s internal organs. In addition, asbestos exposure is a major cause of lung cancer.

All told, such asbestos-caused diseases claim the lives of 107,000 people around the world each year, according to the World Health Organization.

Kathleen Ruff – a prominent asbestos critic – said that the meetings were a positive sign.

“[The asbestos sellers] have lost all the scientific battles and they’re losing the political battle,” she told the news provider.

A Deadly Reminder: 20th Anniversary of Overturning U.S. Asbestos Ban Marked

Posted on October 18, 2011 by Steven Kazan

On October 18, 1991, vested interests including the federal government of Canada, the province of Quebec and asbestos supporters and stakeholders successfully overturned the U.S. Asbestos Ban and Phase-Out Rule (ABPR).

Laurie Kazan-Allen, the Coordinator of International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS), said in a press conference marking the anniversary in Ottawa that the decision to overturn the EPA’s asbestos ban led to an additional 300,000 tons of the carcinogenic material being used in the U.S.

“The continuing lack of an asbestos ban in the United States has been ruthlessly exploited by industry lobbyists to promote global sales of asbestos,” Kazan-Allen noted in her statement.

U.S. Court of Appeals criticized heavily following overturn

When a three-man panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit decided to vacate the ABPR, the judges reportedly admitted that asbestos was, in fact, a toxic material that can have devastating consequences when people are exposed to it, including the development of lung cancer, asbestosis and malignant mesothelioma.

Despite this clear admission that asbestos is a deadly material, the circuit judges took issue with “the manner in which the EPA conducted some of its analysis,” as well as the agency’s “explicit failure to consider the toxicity of likely substitutes,” court documents indicate.

After the ruling was handed down, American asbestos expert Dr. Barry Castleman explained that the EPA asked the Department of Justice to take on an appeal to the Supreme Court, but was rebuffed.

“EPA had to settle for issuing a statement criticizing the court for ‘significant legal errors’ in interpreting the law and substituting its judgment for that of EPA in balancing the costs and benefits of asbestos products banned under the rule,” Castleman said in a 2006 article of the European Journal of Oncology.

Effects of overturn still apparent, time to act is now

The influence of vested interests within the asbestos industry did not stop 20 years ago, as the greed of industry backers and lobbyists continues to be seen around the world, particularly in Canada.

As Kazan-Allen notes in her statement marking the “bloody anniversary,” such behavior was seen as recently as June 2011 during the Rotterdam Convention. During the convention, businessman Baljit Chadha, who is working to secure a $58 million loan guarantee for an asbestos mining project from the Quebec government, stated that there were safe levels of exposure.

While Chadha may have 58 million reasons to support such an outlandish theory, scientists continue to shake their heads, as the World Health Organization reports the age-adjusted mortality rate from mesothelioma more than doubled from 1994 to 2008.

Canada’s Conservative Party Threatens Widow of Asbestos Victim

Posted on August 16, 2011 by Steven Kazan

Michaela Keyserlingk lost her husband Robert in 2009 to the rare but deadly asbestos-related cancer malignant mesothelioma. Now, looking to spread awareness of Canada’s contradictory stance on asbestos, Keyserlingk has reportedly been threatened by the conservative Tory party.

According to the Canadian Press, Conservative Party executive director Dan Hilton has warned Keyserlingk to stop using the Tory symbol in an online advertisement campaign she started against the asbestos industry in Canada.

Keyserlingk has reportedly been running an online campaign since the spring, with the banner that features the Tory logo reading “Canada is the only western country that still exports deadly asbestos!”

The widow, of course, is correct, as Canada has been the subject of tremendous scrutiny for its stance on asbestos, exporting the carcinogenic material to developing countries despite its numerous risks, including the potential for diseases such as mesothelioma, lung cancer and asbestosis.

Keyserlingk Refusing to Bow to Pressure

Keyserlingk, who says she chose to include the Tory symbol in order to elicit the attention of Conservative Party members and bring them to her website, has refused to back down to the threat from Hilton, who told her that “further action” could ensue.

“I have no permission to use [the logo] and they have a legitimate argument against me… But on a human level they have no legitimacy whatsoever,” Keyserlingk told the Canadian Press. She added that it would not be a wise choice for the Conservative Party to sue her, saying “it’s not as if there are millions sitting here.”

The bottom line, Keyserlingk says, is that she will continue fighting for justice, just as her late husband fought with the deadly illness he contracted while working summer jobs on naval ships as a student, the news source said.

Incidents like these, in which political groups fight to keep a deadly industry alive, are why asbestos lawyers at Kazan, McClain, Satterley, Lyons, Greenwood & Oberman PLC have been fighting for compensation for victims and their families since 1974. When innocent men and women are unknowingly exposed to asbestos, they deserve to be compensated appropriately by the responsible parties.

Ontario Mayor Lashes Out at ‘Shameful’ Tory Threat

In response to the threat leveled towards Keyserlingk, the mayor of Sarnia, Ontario, has reportedly written an email to the Conservative Party of Canada, criticizing its “shameful” tactics used to bully the widow, according to the Globe and Mail.

“Your actions on the asbestos issue… with threatening a widow whose husband died of exposure to asbestos are absolutely shameful,” Bradley wrote in the email to Hilton.

Still, the asbestos industry lives on in Canada, even as 107,000 people around the world die each year from asbestos-related illnesses, according to the World Health Organization.

Special Interests Looking to Block Asbestos Ban in Russia

Posted on July 29, 2011 by Steven Kazan

The efforts of the Russian Federal State Unitary Enterprise “NAMI” to ban the use of asbestos in automotive friction products in the Eurasian Economic Community are being rebuffed by stakeholders and special interest groups like the Russian Chrysotile Association.

According to Coordinator of International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS) Laurie Kazan-Allen, the Russian Chrysotile Association has even appealed to Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, in order to aid its fight in blocking the ban and keeping the asbestos industry as is in the country.

Such opposition has been apparent for years, as an August 2008 event titled “Chrysotile Asbestos: Problems of Its Production and Application in Russia and Elsewhere,” heard from a number of Chrysotile Association representatives, who claimed that asbestos can absolutely be handled properly in certain conditions.

Additionally, an asbestos company director claimed his workers had not suffered an asbestos-related disease such as asbestosis or malignant mesothelioma in the previous 30 years, while a medical director asserted the risks of such illnesses were, in fact, very real.

Vested Interests Aside, Asbestos Poses Real Danger

While officials from the asbestos industry quite obviously have vested interests in preventing a ban of the carcinogenic material, the fact remains that even low-level exposure to asbestos can have devastating consequences.

Notably, the symptoms of diseases such as lung cancer, mesothelioma and asbestosis, typically do not appear until decades after initial exposure, so reports that workers have not been affected by exposure to the material may be premature at this stage.

Additionally, it is clear that asbestos exposure can be deadly, as the World Health Organization estimates that 107,000 people die each year around the world as a result of asbestos-related illnesses.

President of Collegium Ramazzini Backs Asbestos Ban

With the debate growing between special interests and those looking to ban asbestos use, president of the Collegium Ramazzini Dr. Philip Landrigan recently penned a letter to Dr. Tatiana Golikova, Russia’s Minister of Health and Social Development, saying he was in support of the ban.

“Asbestos exposure from grinding brake pads and cleaning brake assemblies is a widely recognized health hazard,” Dr. Landrigan wrote. “Manufacturers of new cars and trucks all over the world have converted to safer technologies. China and over 50 other countries have banned the use of asbestos in vehicle friction materials.”

As a result, Dr. Landrigan told the health minister that he looked forward to helping in any process that could ultimately “phase-out” the use of asbestos.

Powerful Lobbying Firm Fights for Asbestos

Posted on July 22, 2011 by Steven Kazan

Asbestos is a harmful substance that kills tens of thousands of people each year around the world through diseases such as malignant mesothelioma and asbestosis. If the dangers posed by the substance weren’t enough, powerful lobbyists and public relation firms have been fighting to preserve the economic interests of those they represent by fighting bans on asbestos around the world.

The most obvious recent example of this was in Canada, where numerous politicians attempted to revitalize an asbestos mine under the guise of job creation despite protests from the medical community around the world about the incredible danger posed by the naturally occurring substance.

However, Canada is not the only country that has been affected by efforts to keep the asbestos industry going, as Malaysia’s Consumers Association of Penang (CAP) said that people from public relations firm APCO Worldwide were at a gathering of the country’s Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) to try to stop a ban on asbestos.

APCO Worldwide in Malaysia

According to its website, APCO Worldwide has 30 offices around the world and represents a variety of businesses. It has represented a number of large businesses such as Bristol-Myers Squibb, Dow Chemical, Microsoft and Procter & Gamble, but it now appears that it is working to preserve asbestos interests in Malaysia.

According to CAP, DOSH had reached a consensus to ban chrysotile (or white) asbestos but Representatives of APCO worked to prevent the ban and also planned to meet with Malaysia’s Minister of Human Resources.

According to an article by Coordinator of International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS) Laurie Kazan-Allen, APCO had recommended to tobacco companies that rather than have industry spokespeople defend their indefensible product, they hire PR firms to do their dirty work for them. Ms. Kazan-Allen draws the conclusion that companies that profit off asbestos took this advice to heart, and hired APCO to represent their interests.

APCO’s lobbying efforts

According to OpenSecrets.org, APCO took in $3.3 million in lobbying income in 2011, with $810,000 of that coming from Dow Chemical.

Helping APCO to lobby for various interests are not only seasoned PR veterans but at least one former U.S. congressman as well. According to a press release, former member of the House of Representatives Baron Hill, a Democrat from Indiana, recently joined APCO as “a senior vice president in the company’s government relations practice,” which could likely be pared down to “lobbyist.”

With such powerful figures on the side of a company allegedly involved in the promotion of the deadly asbestos industry, it will be up to asbestos attorneys and mesothelioma lawyers to ensure that the blue-collar workers who become ill through their exposure to the mineral fibers on the job receive justice.

Malaysian Asbestos Industry Allegedly Uses PR Firm to Fight Asbestos Ban

Posted on July 20, 2011 by Steven Kazan

Anti-asbestos activists in Malaysia recently revealed that the asbestos industry in the country may be using a public relations firm to fight the banning of the carcinogenic material.

Coordinator of International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS) Laurie Kazan-Allen recently wrote about the discoveries of the Consumers Association of Penang (CAP), highlighting how those in the country who wish to continue the use of chrysotile asbestos are using a PR firm to do their dirty work.

PR firm meets with government officials

A recent statement issued by CAP revealed that representatives of APCO Worldwide – the PR firm – were at a gathering of Malaysia’s Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH). At that meeting, which occurred in late May, a consensus was reportedly reached that would have banned chrysotile (or white) asbestos.

However, APCO personnel argued that such a ban could have serious consequences on the economy of Malaysia, which imported 11,491 tons of asbestos in 2010, according to the United States Geological Survey.

APCO’s shady past

According to author George Monbiot, APCO, which has offices around the world, has spent time working for the tobacco industry. During this time, the PR firm advised tobacco companies to not have their own representatives argue their case.

“No matter how strong the arguments, industry spokespeople are, in and of themselves, not always credible or appropriate messengers,” someone from APCO allegedly told a Philip Morris executive.

In addition, the Association of Professional Political Consultants – a UK organization that monitors the PR industry – reports that personnel from APCO’s London office represented an organization called “Russian Chrysotile.” Ms. Kazan-Allen surmises that this is a group that supports the use of chrysotile asbestos from Russia.

Asbestos’ serious health risks

Despite arguments from APCO and others (including a number of Canadian politicians) claiming that chrysotile asbestos does not pose health risks if it is used properly, it has been proven that all forms of the naturally occurring mineral can cause a range of serious illnesses.

Lung cancer, asbestosis and malignant mesothelioma – a rare and deadly cancer – are some of the illnesses that can result from exposure to the deadly mineral fibers.

According to the World Health Organization, such diseases claim the lives of 107,000 people each year around the world.

5 Calls for Sanctions on Canada for Derailing United Nations Protocol

Posted on July 1, 2011 by Steven Kazan

Flag of the United Nations

A United Nations treaty commonly known as the Rotterdam Convention was signed in September 1998 to promote shared responsibilities to safeguard human health and the environment from harmful effects of hazardous chemicals. Under the Rotterdam Convention, countries nominate chemicals for inclusion in the PIC (prior informed consent) list.

Meaning of Rotterdam Convention List

The PIC listing is not a ban. The chemicals included on the list are subject to extensive information exchange and obligations related to international trade. Exporting nations are required to provide documentation on the nature of the substance so that importers can make informed decision as to whether or not they are capable of using it safely.

Recent Developments

At the Rotterdam Convention meeting in Geneva last week, the Canadian delegation single-handedly derailed a long-standing attempt to include chrysotile asbestos on the Convention’s prior informed consent list. Despite support from 142 out of 143 Parties to the Convention, the listing was blocked due to a 100% unanimity requirement.

Rotterdam Convention Alliance member Laurie Kazan-Allen, Coordinator of International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS) has been campaigning since 1999 to achieve justice for all asbestos victims and a global ban on asbestos. Commenting on recent developments, Ms. Kazan-Allen said,

“What we saw last week in Geneva…was pure evil. Canada is now a rogue state and should be dealt with in the same way as other administrations which have breached the acceptable level of behavior expected of civilized societies.”

Calls for Action

At a seminar in Belgium yesterday organized by the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists & Democrats in the European Parliament in collaboration with trade unions and non-governmental organizations, Ms. Kazan-Allen made these requests of the Members of the European Parliament:

1. Issue a denunciation of the obstructive behavior of the Canadian delegation at the Rotterdam Convention meeting. Measures should be considered such as sanctions and trade boycotts which would translate outrage into action.

2. Challenge the $58 million loan guarantee that the Quebec government offered the international consortium that plans to open a new asbestos mine in Quebec.

3. Lobby the European Commission and Directorate General (DG) for Health and Consumers, DG Environment, DG Employment, Social Affairs & Inclusion, and DG Justice to explore all possible options for effecting a change in Canada’s asbestos policy.

4. Raise concerns about Canada’s reckless endangerment of human life, especially the lives of vulnerable people in asbestos-consuming countries, at all possible forums.

5. Place on record support for a WHO Framework Convention on Asbestos Control and to work with their WHO and ILO partners to progress this initiative.

Kazan Law strongly supports these calls and suggests that all organizations and individuals join with us in supporting the United Nations protocol to protect vulnerable populations from the hazards of asbestos.

Canada Blocks Asbestos from Hazardous Chemical List

Posted on June 24, 2011 by Steven Kazan

Despite the fact that Canada has been criticized from nearly every corner of the globe over its asbestos policies, the country has decided to block the listing of the carcinogenic substance as a hazardous chemical.

According to the Toronto Sun, countries from around the globe are meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, to debate the listing of chrysotile asbestos as hazardous under the Rotterdam Convention, but Canada is not budging.

As a result, the country is drawing even more criticism from officials at home as well as leaders from other countries, the news source said.

“The government says that the product is safe if used in a certain fashion but they’re refusing to ensure that the buyer is told to beware,” said Canada’s New Democratic Party (NDP) leader Jack Layton. “This is absolutely outrageous and unacceptable.”

Asbestos Remains Deadly Killer Around the World

While Canada fights to keep its asbestos industry alive, scientists continue to assert the dangerous properties of the material, particularly when individuals inhale the naturally occurring mineral fibers.

The inhalation of asbestos fibers has been proven to cause a range of serious illnesses, which include lung cancer, asbestosis and malignant mesothelioma, a rare form of cancer that attacks the tissues surrounding many of the body’s internal organs.

According to the National Cancer Institute, approximately 2,500 Americans receive a mesothelioma diagnosis each year. All told, asbestos-related diseases kill approximately 107,000 people around the world every year, according to the World Health Organization.

Canadian Officials Continue Pushing for Right to Export Carcinogen

While Canada has regulated the use of asbestos in its own country – much like many governments across the globe – industry officials still argue that they have the right to export the dangerous material to countries looking to purchase it.

According to the Sun, Industry Minister Christian Paradis says that Canadian companies have a number of incentives to continue exporting asbestos, from supplying developing countries that want to use it to creating jobs at the Jeffrey Mine in Quebec.

The Quebec government has lent a hand to the mine as well, offering it millions of dollars to keep it operational, according to the news source.

At some point, however, many government officials say that those pushing for the continued mining and exportation of asbestos need to realize the consequences their actions are having on others in different countries.

“Without exaggeration, we are exporting human misery on a monumental scale and yet we are taking active steps to ensure that companies do not even warn their customers,” NDP MP (Member of Parliament) Pat Martin explained.

Pressure to Regulate Chrysotile Asbestos Ramped up at United Nations Meeting

Posted on June 16, 2011 by Steven Kazan

Representatives from the 143 countries in the United Nations are in the process of meeting in Geneva to discuss potential regulations for chrysotile asbestos, which is most notably mined in Quebec, Canada, reports the Montreal Gazette.

According to the news source, the specific type of asbestos is currently banned in the entire 27-country European Union, as well as Australia. Use of the substance is also substantially regulated in countries such as Chile.

This year, the material could become regulated in countries like Canada, one of its main exporters, as a number of health officials have written a letter to Prime Minister Stephen Harper supporting the Rotterdam Convention‘s chemical review committee’s recommendation that the substance become listed in Annex 3.

According to the website for the convention, chemicals that are listed in Annex 3 “include pesticides and industrial chemicals that have been banned or severely restricted for health or environmental reasons by parties.”

Carcinogenic Properties Concern Health Officials

The major reason why health officials in Canada are encouraging the Prime Minister to take action towards at least regulating chrysotile asbestos is that the carcinogenic substance has been proven to cause a range of serious illnesses.

In fact, in the letter itself, the 48 Quebec doctors point out that “there is general consensus among the scientific community that all types of asbestos fibers are carcinogenic… and can cause asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma when inhaled.”

Malignant mesothelioma, which is a rare cancer, attacks the tissues surrounding the majority of the body’s internal organs.

In total, asbestos-related diseases kill approximately 107,000 people around the world each year, according to the World Health Organization.

Doctors’ Recommendations Go Beyond Politics

While these diseases are very real, Canada has remained steadfast in arguing that chrysotile asbestos can be used safely in materials such as cement as long as the fibers themselves are sealed.

However, recent research conducted by Britain’s chief scientific adviser Sir John Beddington suggested that “on the evidence available, there is no justification for an imminent change to the international scientific consensus on the classification of chrysotile as a Class 1 carcinogen,” according to the news source.

Additionally, the Quebec doctors say in the letter to Prime Minister Harper that the recommendation to put the substance into the Rotterdam Convention was also made by 31 “neutral scientific experts.”

“The whole medical and independent scientific community in Quebec, Canada and internationally is unanimous,” the letter states.

asbestos ban