Asbestos, Quebec

Asbestos, Quebec

Asbestos is a Canadian town located in the Estrie region of southeastern Quebec on the Nicolet River. Asbestos is the seat of Les Sources Regional County Municipality, formerly known as the Asbestos Regional County Municipality.

As of the 2006 census, 6,819 people resided in the town of Asbestos. The town covers an area of 29.67 square kilometres (11.46 sq mi). 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, 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.

In late 2011, Canada's remaining two asbestos mines (both in the Province of Quebec), including the Jeffrey mine, halted operations. 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. In September 2012, before the loan funds were delivered, the Parti Quebecois defeated the Quebec Liberal Party in the Quebec provincial election. The Parti Quebecois 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.

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.