The purpose of this brochure of ISSA's Special Commission on Prevention is to remind the reader that whilst asbestos may still be seen as a "miracle mineral", it is above all a time bomb and the moment has now come to ban it once and for all.

The brochure seeks to alert decision-makers and all the social partners of the devastating consequences, both human and economic, which any short-termist policy would bring in the decades ahead. It thus provides some useful information about the origin, production and use of asbestos.

It looks into the health effects of asbestos, the cost of asbestos-related diseases and what to do with asbestos-containing materials which are already in place or when there is an urgent need to remove them. Finally, it demonstrates that asbestos can always be replaced by a range of substitute products.