Asbestos in Brazil
Brazil is one of the world’s most notable producers of asbestos.
In a 2003 report, Brazil’s Ministry of Labour and Employment reported
that the country produced 200,000 tons of asbestos annually, exporting
nearly 70,000 tons of it to a number of countries.
Additionally, while the MLE reported that asbestos use in the United
States equaled approximately 100 grams per citizen, the use and asbestos exposure in Brazil was found to be significantly higher at 1,400 grams per citizen.
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Use of asbestos in the South American country was also found to be
increasing at a rate of 7 percent annually during the final three
decades of the twentieth century, a time period that many other
countries - the United States included - decreased usage. Eternit SA, a
subsidiary of the construction company Saint-Gobain, had been a leading
exporter of asbestos-laden products before an eventual diversification
towards safer products.
In an attempt to decrease the amount of asbestos usage across the
country, the Brazilian Supremo Tribunal Federal has approved, and since
voted to maintain, a law that prohibits the use of any asbestos products
in the state of São Paulo. Brazil was also one of the first countries
to adopt and ratify International Labour Organization Convention 162 to
improve the safety regarding asbestos usage.
Because nearly a quarter of all deaths in Brazil never have a defined
cause or reason, the true total number of casualties related to mesothelioma, lung cancer, or asbestosis is hard to quantify.