Asbestos, Quebec

Asbestos
Town
Location within Les Sources RCM.
Asbestos Location in southern Quebec.
Coordinates: 45°46′N 71°56′W / 45.767°N 71.933°WCoordinates: 45°46′N 71°56′W / 45.767°N 71.933°W[1]
Country	Canada
Province	Quebec
Region	Estrie
RCM	Les Sources
Constituted	December 8, 1999
Government[2]
• Mayor	Hugues Grimard
• Federal riding	Richmond—Arthabaska
• Prov. riding	Richmond
Area[2][3]
• Town	31.70 km^2 (12.24 sq mi)
• Land	29.67 km^2 (11.46 sq mi)
Population (2011)[3]
• Town	7,096
• Density	239.1/km^2 (619/sq mi)
• Urban	7,017
• Pop 2006-2011	4.1%
Time zone	EST (UTC−5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC−4)
Postal code(s)	J1T
Area code(s)	819
Highways	Route 249 Route 255
Website	www.ville.asbestos.qc.ca

Asbestos is a town in the Estrie region of southeastern Quebec, Canada on the Nicolet River.^[4] Asbestos is the seat of Les Sources Regional County Municipality, formerly known as the Asbestos Regional County Municipality. The town covers an area of 29.67 square kilometres (11.46 sq mi), including land acquired due to the merger of the City of Asbestos with the Municipality of Trois-Lacs on Dec 8, 1999.

At the 2011 census, 7,096 people resided in Asbestos. It is situated in the centre of a square formed by the cities of Drummondville, Sherbrooke and Victoriaville, and the Nicolet River to the north. It is the site of the Jeffrey mine, until recently the world's largest asbestos mine,^[5] which has long been the town's largest employer, and of the now-closed Magnola magnesium refinery. It was the site of the famous 1949 Asbestos Strike.

History of Asbestos, Quebec

During the 1960s, as the town was thriving, it could afford to expand and invest in its infrastructure and artistic patrimony. As such, it provided itself with a new modern town-hall, adorned with a grand mural in the main hallway by the artist Denis Juneau, as well as some ceramic pieces in the church by the famed ceramist Claude Vermette.

In late 2011, Canada's remaining two asbestos mines (both in the Province of Quebec), including the Jeffrey mine, halted operations.^[6] In June 2012, a $58 million loan was promised by the Quebec government to restart and operate the Jeffrey mine for the next 20 years.^[7] In September 2012, before the loan funds were delivered, the Parti Québécois defeated the Quebec Liberal Party in the Quebec provincial election. The Parti Québécois followed through with an election promise to halt asbestos mining and to cancel the $58 million loan, and put funding toward economic diversification in the area.^[8][9]

Demographics

Population

Canada census – Asbestos, Quebec community profile
	2011	2006	2001
Population:	7,096 (+4.1% from 2006)	6,819 (+3.6% from 2001)	6,580 (-3.1% from 1996)
Land area:	29.67 km^2 (11.46 sq mi)	29.67 km^2 (11.46 sq mi)	29.67 km^2 (11.46 sq mi)
Population density:	239.1/km^2 (619/sq mi)	229.8/km^2 (595/sq mi)	221.7/km^2 (574/sq mi)
Median age:	51.1 (M: 48.4, F: 53.5)	49.5 (M: 48.0, F: 51.0)	46.4 (M: 44.5, F: 48.0)
Total private dwellings:	3,467	3,429	3,375
Median household income:	$36,994	$36,678	$33,133
Notes: Population in 1996: 6,793[10] (+4.7% from 1991) - Population in 1991: 6,487[10] Includes corrections and updates for 1996. – References: 2011[11] 2006[12] 2001[13]

Language

Canada Census Mother Tongue - Asbestos, Quebec[14]
Census		Total		French				English				French & English				Other
Year		Responses		Count	Trend	Pop %		Count	Trend	Pop %		Count	Trend	Pop %		Count	Trend	Pop %
2011		6,955		6,775	4.9%	97.41%		115	43.8%	1.65%		40	60.0%	0.58%		25	73.7%	0.36%
2006		6,660		6,460	2.1%	97.00%		80	11.1%	1.20%		25	150.0%	0.38%		95	850.0%	1.43%
2001		6,435		6,325	5.8%	98.29%		90	5.9%	1.40%		10	n/a%	0.16%		10	66.7%	0.16%
1996		6,095		5,980	n/a	98.11%		85	n/a	1.39%		0	n/a	0.00%		30	n/a	0.49%

See also

• List of cities in Quebec
• Asbest, similarly named town in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia

References

1. Reference number 2261 of the Commission de toponymie du Québec (French)
2. Geographic code 40043 in the official Répertoire des municipalités (French)
3. "(Code 2440043) Census Profile". 2011 census. Statistics Canada. 2012.
4. "Asbestos" in The New Encyclopaedia Britannica. Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 613.
5. Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration (U.S.) (2006-03-05). Industrial minerals & rocks: commodities, markets, and uses. p. 196. ISBN 978-0-87335-233-8.
6. Asbestos mining stops for first time in 130 years
7. http://thechronicleherald.ca/canada/112512-asbestos-mine-reboot-with-quebec-cash-sparks-criticism
8. Quebec Budget: Finance Minister Nicolas Marceau tightens spending, levies new taxes Archived November 29, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.
9. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/story/2012/09/14/montreal-canada-thetford-mines-asbestos.html
10. "Electronic Area Profiles". Canada 1996 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 2013-05-11.
11. "2011 Community Profiles". Canada 2011 Census. Statistics Canada. July 5, 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-28.
12. "2006 Community Profiles". Canada 2006 Census. Statistics Canada. March 30, 2011. Retrieved 2011-08-18.
13. "2001 Community Profiles". Canada 2001 Census. Statistics Canada. February 17, 2012. Retrieved 2012-02-09.
14. Statistics Canada: 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011 census

External links

• Town of Asbestos official site.
• Townships Heritage: The Jeffrey Mine, Asbestos.
• MRC des Sources.
• Asbestos, PQ: Graphic Novel.