What is Asbestos? Essay -- Environment, Minerals

INTRODUCTIONAsbestos has been used since prehistoric times and there is archaeological usher from Finland, pottery containing asbestos fibres dating from 2500 BC (Mcculloch, 1986). Where asbestos fibres were mixed with clay to form stronger ceramic utensils and pots (Benarde, 1990), the ancient Greeks used it to make lamp wicks and other fireproof items. However, the romans wove asbestos fibres into fabrics to make towels, nets and til now head coverings for women (Asbestos Diseases Society of Australia, 1995, p.10). The substance was known to be inextinguishable or unquenchable. Though, asbestos had been around for thousands of years, mass use of the product became popular in the 1800s (Mcculloch, 1986). It was make up of non-flammable fibres and was very sturdy. Also, it was used in homes, businesses, and schools. Asbestos is a dangerous fibre, be shake its fibres vex airborne and can be inhaled or swallowed (Lu & Kacew, 2009). Over time, it can cause both chronic lung condition s and fatal forms of asbestos cancer. (Benarde, 1990 Mcculloch, 1986).In the early 1900s to 1980s doctors in Europe discovered that workers were suffering from the respiratory diseases (Benarde, 1990), for the reason that they worked in to a great extent polluted asbestos containing atmospheres, excessive numbers of them became cases of asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma, because the workers were exposed in a flash or indirectly in virtually any occupation, even those who worked in offices (Benarde, 1990 Mcculloch, 1986). Furthermore, employees who worked for asbestos embark building, construction, mining, and other factories whose products used asbestos were also getting ill (Mcculloch, 1986), asbestos fibres were also organism brought home on employees cl... ...ially in asbestos mining. A lot of the victims of the disease had worked directly with asbestos nevertheless, these good deal got their exposures in the shipyard, construction trades, and buildings as well as fr om the pollution of their homes and communities. As a result it occurred that nearly the uncontrolled use of asbestos progressively increased the population at risk from few thousand asbestos workers to millions of people in the general population.The employers and employees who worked in the asbestos reduction industry continued to appall on the handling of the human carcinogen. However, the rules and regulations were put in place to chink safety and protection of the workers. Sufficiency protective equipment and training were provided, medical inspection programs by conducting routine examination of all the workers who worked with asbestos.