You can download Asbestos Awareness Australia’s entire report here:
Around 4,000 people die each year from Asbestos related disease, including around 800 from mesothelioma, perhaps the most vile of the cancers. The asbestos ban in 2003 in Australia was ‘a significant victory for the trade union movement’ … [but] ‘unfortunately represented a story of the lack of political will by governments at Federal and State levels to act in the health interests of their community.’
Our survey of more than 43,000 Australian households found that knowledge about the following basic facts is very poor:
- The level of exposure to asbestos that is dangerous.
- The period of exposure to asbestos that is dangerous.
- The deadliness of exposure to asbestos.4. The annual death count from asbestos-related diseases in Australia.
Most Australian households have not been properly warned about the risks and impacts of legacy asbestos, do not know that their lives are at stake, and are not using licensed asbestos professionals. Further, most Australians readily exclude themselves from any of the ‘at risk” categories and most think the death count from asbestos-related diseases each year is below 50.
Overall, the survey findings are consistent with inadequate public information, education, and warnings in Australia on asbestos threats and consequences.
Our broader research points to longstanding key messages that have been promulgated by James Hardie Industries Ltd “James Hardie”, CSR Ltd “CSR”, and the federal and state governments in Australia to downplay the risks of asbestos exposure outside of workplaces and to mask the scale of deaths from asbestos-related diseases.
Messages that are commonly portrayed within official and public health sources in Australia include the following:Half Truths or Misconceptions:
- Instances of mesothelioma and other asbestos-related illnesses are rare and have peaked.
- The numbers of historical deaths from asbestos-related diseases are uncertain.
- Public health messaging on asbestos risks should be disseminated on a limited basis, so as not to scare the community.
- Current cases of asbestos-related disease result from historical settings that no longer exist today.
- The risks of asbestos-related diseases are largely confined to working-class older men.
- Asbestos-related diseases require (or usually involve) intense exposure over long periods.
- The risks of asbestos-related diseases are largely confined to people with occupational exposure to asbestos.
- Much of the exposure of the Australian population to asbestos (and the comparative incidental exposure levels used in scientific modelling) is caused by naturally occurring asbestos.
- Legacy asbestos products that are bonded or encased are safe and best left in position.
- It is safer to “manage” than to remove in situ asbestos.
In this show, Asbestos Awareness Australia discusses the first eight of the above messages.
The last two claims are more complex and will be debated in a future one. We ultimately categorise these messages as misconceptions or half-truths because they are incomplete and misleading when not conveyed with proper context.
And ask yourself, why are these misconceptions are still commonly used?
Public and unequivocal acknowledgement by the industry and the federal and state governments of the continuing risks of legacy asbestos in homes, and the associated deaths arising from exposure to asbestos outside of workplace settings, would have serious repercussions. Such public recognition of the asbestos crisis would bring asbestos concerns to the forefront of the public mind.
Asbestos Awareness Australia Ltd is a registered not-for-profit company limited by guarantee, is a registered charity, and has endorsement from the Australian Taxation Office as a gift deductible recipient. The company was set up:
- To enhance public awareness and knowledge of the dangers of asbestos threats.
- To promote measures and policies that prevent or minimise the harms from asbestos-related diseases.
To achieve these objectives, the company provides public access to widely sourced information on asbestos risks and impacts, including the associated medical, legal, and political debates.