Russia helps block export restriction on asbestos
Four countries have blocked a bid to add chrysotile asbestos to a list of dangerous substances subject to export restrictions during a UN meeting in Geneva that concluded early Saturday, participants said. Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Zimbabwe opposed listing the mineral also known as white asbestos, which health experts say causes cancer, on the Rotterdam Convention list, according to groups attending the Geneva meeting. The 1998 Rotterdam Convention restricts trade in chemicals by obliging exporters to ensure that destination countries have been fully informed about the risks involved and have given an explicit green light for imports. "The failure to list chrysotile asbestos means millions of exposed workers will stay ignorant of its deadly dangers," said Brian Kohler, head of health, security and sustainable development for the IndustriALL Global Union.
