The fist description of asbestos was done by the Greek philosopher Theophrastus in 300 BC, in his work titled “On Stones”. The meaning of the word asbestos is “inextinguishable” or “unquenchable” and comes from the ancient Greek word sasbestos. Nowadays, we know that the exposure to asbestos is the principal cause of asbestosis, mesothelioma, and other asbestos-related diseases. However, centuries ago this mineral was praised as a miracle, and was used in innumerable products and materials due to its humidity and fire resistance properties. In this article, we would tell you the 10 main facts in asbestos history.
- Since 5000 BC, asbestos used to be mined from ancient stone quarries in Cyprus, Greece, Sweden, and Finland.
- Greeks and Romans explored asbestos properties, but they also noticed its harmful effects on the mining slaves. In the year 100AD, the Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder, recorded asbestos exposure health effects in his work “Natural History”.
- Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne is reputed to have an asbestos tablecloth. The Emperor died in 814 of pleurisy, an inflammation of the membrane that protects and surrounds the lungs.
- Reported by the German scientist Frank Bruckmann, asbestos is rediscovered by modern man in 1727 and becomes popular in building materials.
- In 1820, the Italian scientist Giovanni Aldini created the first fireproof asbestos’ clothing.
- The Jeffrey asbestos mine in Quebec was opened in 1878, as the first commercial asbestos mine in North America.
- In 1924, British woman Nellie Kershaw died from asbestosis (chronic inflammation of the lungs) and it is the first documented dead due to the asbestos exposure.
- In 1973, the first major asbestos lawsuit took place, in which an insulation worker won the trial against the large asbestos manufacturers. This motivated more than 25,000 lawsuits during the following decade.
- The first country to ban asbestos in all its types was Iceland in 1983, followed by the United Kingdom in 1999, Australia in 2003 and the European Union countries in 2005. Currently, asbestos has been completely banned in 55 nations.
- Canada stopped all asbestos mining operations in 2012. Still, Canada among other countries as the United States, Russia, China, India, and Brazil, hasn’t prohibited the use of asbestos.
Occupational exposure to asbestos costs more than 107,000 fatalities per year according to the World Health Organization (WHO). An estimated 125 million people are exposed to asbestos at work in the world. Still when asbestos companies started to know about the health consequences of its exposure, most of them chose to ignore and keep the information from the public and employees, leading to even more deaths.
These are the 10 curious facts about asbestos history. Protect your health and the health of your family or workers, whether you have the suspicion of having asbestos at home or business, at A&D Demolition and Asbestos Removal we are a team of professionals that counts with over 10 years of industry background. If you have a renovation project in mind and are unsure of how to start, you can rely on our experience to handle any situation of demolition and asbestos removal, eliminating any risk of the process. Your safety is our number one responsibility, and we offer a quality job at a reasonable price. We take care of every step from demolition to transport and disposal of all waste and hazardous materials. Our experience enables us to do a hassle free demotion project without any environmental issues. Contact us for a free on-site quote!