In Australia at present there are over 500 cases of Mesothelioma a year being diagnosed
Asbestos was mined in Australia but the demand was so high that twenty two million pounds of asbestos was still imported into Australia for the construction industry during the 1970’s.
Mesothelioma in Australia
But figures have suggested that within the next fifteen years this figure will nearly double. Australia and Britain are the two countries with the most reported deaths from the disease Mesothelioma.
A worrying development for the medical profession in Australia. An estimated 20% increase of women who are expected to be diagnosed with Mesothelioma in 2011.
This is due to the fact that the women were the ones who washed the overalls and clothes of their husbands and in the age before washing machines they were exposed to inhaling the asbestos that way.
It was not until the dangers of Asbestos became public in the early 1980’s that the mines were closed down and stringent Health and Safety laws and regulations came into force in Australia.
Dangers of Asbestos
When I was ten years old in 1967 I moved to Australia with my parents and four siblings. We lived there for two years totally unaware of the danger we were in.
Our House was made from Asbestos Blocks
Any one of us could have developed Asbestos Lung Disease or Malignant Mesothelioma Cancer if the asbestos material had been damaged.
My father died from Lung Cancer. I do not know if living in this house was the cause or not. But I do wonder
Nearly 80% of buildings and homes built before the late 1970’s still contain Asbestos
The US Environmental Protection Agency states that over 700,000 buildings in America today contain Asbestos insulation.
This is present in insulation materials used such as the rolls and the loose chips for roofs and walls. Asbestos is extremely fire resistant so was ideal for this purpose.
Floor and ceiling tiles were often made from asbestos because of this quality.
It was mixed with concrete to build the walls of buildings. All the lining for water pipes, heaters and ventilation pipes and air conditioning fixtures were made from asbestos
Asbestos was mined in Australia but the demand was so high that twenty two million pounds of asbestos was still imported into Australia for the construction industry during the 1970’s.