Registry planned for Baie Verte asbestos miners

The Newfoundland and Labrador government intends to set up a registry of former miners who worked at the abandoned Baie Verte asbestos mine, which has long been linked with illness and death.

The registry would include information on workers' health, including whether they have contracted asbestos-related diseases.

The United Steelworkers union says at least 140 former asbestos miners have developed some form of cancer. The mine, which was developed in the 1950s, passed through several owners before closing in 1995.

Victoria Quigley, whose father Clarence Traverse had gastrointestinal cancer and was buried last week, said a registry is a step forward, but is not enough.

"We want action and not just words," she said.

"Something has to be done. I mean as long as the pit is still open up there, we're all still in danger, because it's still blowing around up there. Our kids go back and forth up there every day to go to school."

Traverse, 72, received a settlement package two years ago after years of fighting.

Many other ailing or deceased miners, though, have not received compensation.

Lar Hoven, chairman ofthe Baie Verte Peninsula Action Committee, hopes the registry will help accomplish something.

"It's going to take a long time," he said.

"From this final report of the registry and hopefully that will lead into a health study."

The registry would need to track down about 3,000 individuals.

Health concerns about the asbestos mine have been debated for decades.

In the 1970s, miners in Baie Vertewere ona 15-week strike that was described as the longest health-relatedwalkout in Canadian history. The workers fought for gear to protect them against the asbestos they mined.