Asbestos Town Gets a New Name

Asbestos.com reports: A town named Amiante in Quebec, Canada has changed its name to stop bad reputation. The name of the town, Amiante means asbestos, the primary cause of mesothelioma, a malignant form of cancer. The new name is ‘des sources’.

The town received its name in the nineteenth century following the discovery that asbestos is abundant there. That time, since people didn’t know of the malicious effects of the mineral, the town was named after the mineral, which would form a terrible bad name for it in the later part of 20th century.

The town’s main financial source proved to be the mined asbestos, which was used and exported for building constructions, proving the town to be one of the primary sources of the mineral for the biggest asbestos-exporting country, Canada.

However, some people still believe that the name change is ‘cosmetic’ as per the new trend of changing the names of cities and towns.