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Silicosis as bad as ever
Monday, March 16, 2009

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The recent controversy about silicosis in the Hemlo gold field involving Hon. Michael Gravelle (“MPP backtracks on silicosis inquiry,” March 7) and the CBC program, “The Silicosis Files” neglects to report the whole story on this industrial disease, which allegedly had been eradicated.
The WSIB approved the first Hemlo silicosis claim in 1993. It is believed that there are presently some 18 claims, seven or eight having been approved.
In this instance we have had rather short incubation periods and a rather small underground mining population of less than 1,000 miners.
From 1990 through 2000, the WSIB approved 60 claims, rejected 28 claims with nine claims pending in the Ontario mining sector.
In the non-mining group, for the same period, 51 silicosis claims were approved, 20 claims rejected, 10 claims were pending.
The total claims, pending, allowed and denied in the period 1990 through 2000 was 178.
Pliny first reported pneumoconiosis in the first century B.C. We can hardly argue we haven‘t had time to fix the problem. Given that we know how to prevent silicosis and we haven‘t, these numbers border on being criminal.
This industrial disease, far from being eradicated, is as bad as it‘s ever been. We need to focus on bringing this disease under control and play fewer political games.

Moses C. Sheppard
THUNDER BAY
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