By the numbers: A closer look at asbestos

The Globe and Mail 15 December 2016

2,300: Estimated annual number of Canadians diagnosed with asbestos-related cancers including mesothelioma and lung cancer (Occupational Cancer Research Centre)

580: Number of new cases of mesothelioma – a deadly form of cancer caused almost exclusively by asbestos exposure – in 2013, a record high and more than double levels of two decades earlier (Statistics Canada)

$8.3-million: Value of asbestos-related imports that entered Canada in 2015, a six-year high. About half of that total was in brake pads and linings. (Statscan)

1870s-2011: Years in which Canada mined asbestos. By 1947, Canada was the world’s top producer of asbestos, mining and milling two-thirds of the world’s supply. An unknown number of deaths abroad are attributable to Canadian exports of asbestos.

152,000: Estimate of the number of Canadians who are exposed to asbestos in the workplace. These include tradespeople, construction workers, mechanics and shipbuilders. (CAREX)

125 million: Estimate of the current number of people in the world who are exposed to asbestos at the workplace. About half of deaths from occupational cancer are thought to be caused by asbestos. (World Health Organization)

$1.7-billion: Estimate of the burden of asbestos-related cancers on Canadian society, a calculation that includes costs related to health care, lost productivity and quality of life (Institute for Work & Health)

50+: Number of countries around the world that have banned asbestos, including Germany, the U.K., Australia, Japan, Iceland and New Zealand

www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/asbestos-by-the-numbers/article33331241/