Loved no more

By M.D. | OTTAWA

IT HAS long been an article of faith that the Canadian government, regardless of which party was in power, would defend the asbestos industry in the province of Quebec. Federal officials have fought for years to keep chrysotile, the type of asbestos mined in the province, off an international list of hazardous substances put together under the Rotterdam Convention. Federal (and provincial) funds went to the now defunct Chrysotile Institute, which advocated internationally for its “safe and responsible” use. Even as Canadian and international medical groups called for a ban on chrysotile because of its link to cancer and the media pointed to the hypocrisy of spending millions to rid Canadian government buildings of asbestos while pushing developing countries to buy it, the federal government stood firm.

That changed on September 14th, when the federal industry minister, Christian Paradis, said Canada would no longer block the inclusion of chrysotile on the Rotterdam Convention’s list. At first glance, giving up this particular fight changes little. Larger asbestos exporters such as Russia, Brazil, Kazakhstan or China, can still prevent a decision that requires unanimous consensus. However it is hugely symbolic within Canada, especially as it was accompanied by a promise to spend C$50m ($51m) in federal funds to help the towns of Thetford Mines and Asbestos diversify their economies. This was a clear signal to the two remaining mines, which are both closed, that the federal government can no longer be counted on for support.

The newly elected Parti Québécois (PQ) government in Quebec is already preparing to withdraw a lifeline offered to one of the mines by the former Liberal government of Jean Charest. Pauline Marois, the PQ premier, says she will not honour Mr Charest’s promised loan of C$58m to help restart the Jeffrey Mine, which employed 250 people before it closed in 2011. NEWCO Opérations Black Lake, which in 2009 closed its mine near Thetford Mines, employing 350, entered bankruptcy protection earlier this year. Mr Paradis, who is also the local MP, pointed to Ms Marois’s move, rather than any second thoughts about health effects, as the trigger for his actions. “Our region will have to live with the consequences of Ms Marois’s decision,” he said.

Some of those consequences will be beneficial. Canada will no longer have to defend asbestos on the world stage, nor serve as a foil for comedians such as Aasif Mandvi, who in a segment on The Daily Show, an American satirical news program, with Jon Stewart last year asked the operator of the Jeffrey Mine whether asbestos meant something different in French than English. “Because in English it means slow, hacking death,” he said. The decision will likely ease ongoing trade negotiations with the European Union, which has banned asbestos since 2005, and with some members of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, such as Australia, which also have bans. Even the unemployed miners might benefit if they move to the booming western provinces where mining skills are in demand, as the Fraser Institute, a right-leaning think-tank, suggested in a recent commentary.

Neither mining firm has acknowledged publicly that after 130 years the local industry, which once produced 85% of the world’s supply but was down to about 5% in 2010, is finished. However, both need to attract investors if they hope to restart operations. With the federal and provincial governments abandoning the cause, there is little hope of that.