News

The Irrawaddy 21 December 2016 | Saw Yan Naing

Villagers from the economic development-driven Dawei District in Tenasserim Division say that they have not received proper compensation after a tin mining project began negatively affecting their livelihoods.

With their lawyers, locals from Myaung Pyo village in Dawei District held a press conference in Rangoon on Wednesday, explaining that they had been fighting for two years to be compensated by the Myanmar Pongpipat Company’s Heinda tin mining project due to its negative physical and environmental impact.

The Star 20 December 2016 | Jennifer Wells

Context behind “comprehensive ban” is that successive Canadian governments shirked their responsibility on the issue for decades.

Has the phrase “better late than never” ever stood on a weaker truss than the Government of Canada’s decades-late decision to ban the manufacture, use, import and export of asbestos?

The New York Times 19 December 2016 | Andrew Boryga   

Although Italy joined asbestos-producing nations in banning the carcinogenic material at the end of the 20th century, thousands of people working in factories and living in public housing had already been exposed. In other words, as the Italian photographer Cinzia Canneri explained, the damage had been done by the 1980s.

View Slide Show 22 Photographs   Photo Credit: Cinzia Canneri

Swiss Info 19 December 2016

A CHF100 million ($97 million) fund is to be created in Switzerland to offer support for victims of asbestos-related illnesses who are not eligible for accident insurance. The construction industry and insurers will voluntarily contribute to the fund that will run until 2025.

The Nation 16 December 2016 | Pratch Rujivanarom

ABOUT 300 protesters yesterday broke into a public hearing on the “destructive” Songkhla II deep-sea port, claiming the forum was false as only supporters of the project were invited. They gathered in front of the Hotel in Songkhla from early morning in a bid to stop the hearing being held by the Marine Department. At 9.30am, they successfully breached the venue and continued to protest inside the meeting room.

16 December 2016 | European Council

On 16 December, the Permanent Representatives Committee (Coreper) endorsed, on behalf of the Council, a deal with the European Parliament on a draft regulation on mercury. The new rules aim to enhance the protection against the pollution by this highly toxic substance. 

The Observer 15 December 2016 | Paul Morden

Sandy Kinart was holding back tears Thursday after hearing Canada will ban asbestos in 2018.

Kinart, with the group Victims of Chemical Valley, has worked for years alongside others in Sarnia and elsewhere to see an end to the use of the material that has had a deadly impact on the community.

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)

The Canadian Press 15 December 2016  

OTTAWA – The federal government says it will ban all products containing asbestos by 2018. Here's a timeline of the history of asbestos in Canada.

Right On Canada 15 December 2016 | Kathleen Ruff

The Canadian government today announced that it will legislate a comprehensive ban on asbestos and asbestos-containing products by 2018.

This historic announcement ends Canada’s century-old policy of mining, using, exporting and promoting asbestos. The announcement was made by four Ministers – the Minister of Science, the Minister of Health, the Minister of the Environment and the Minister of Public Works – at a press conference held at the Ottawa Hospital.