Asbestos News
Canadian documentary about asbestos to premiere
A Canadian filmmaker whose father died from an asbestos-related disease will unveil her short documentary about asbestos in Toronto on February 24.Kathleen Mullen's film, Breathtaking, shows her and her family's personal history with asbestos as well as following the naturally occurring mineral from the mines of Quebec to India, according to the Toronto Star. Mullen's father, Richard, died of cancer after being exposed to asbestos during his career as an engineer.
Mullen said following asbestos from its source to the place where it is eventually used was essential to her film.
"I wanted to trace the path that asbestos takes. I went to Quebec because that's where we mine it," she told the news source. "I decided to go to India because I was interested in what was happening"
Asbestos has been banned in more than 50 countries worldwide but Canada still mines the carcinogenic substance and exports most of it to developing countries. According to Mullen, only 2 to 3 percent of the substance mined in Canada stays there with the rest going overseas.
Exposure to asbestos has been known to cause malignant mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer since the mid-1960s.
2/23/11
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