File 2000.1.1.3.21 - Shipping & Transportation

• Graphic material

269 photographs (216 prints : b&w and col. - 17 photographic negatives : col. - 36 photographic slides : col. ; 2.5 x 3.5 cm)

File contains photographs pertaining to the transportation of asbestos fibre.

• These include portraits of Clinton trailer trucks, trucks from the Cassiar Transport Division at Mile 860 on the Alaskan Highway, the assembly of large freight trucks, an unidentified bridge, and ships and buildings at the Cassiar Shipping Facilities at Pier 94 on the Asbestos Warf in North Vancouver, B.C.
• Twenty-three photographs dated 1982 depict asbestos fiber bales on pallets and inside shipping containers, with accompanying annotations commenting on the quality of the packing. Several images show fibre bales broken during shipment. An accompanying note reads: "SMD - please ensure this cannot reoccur.", and a photo caption reads: "pierced bags are resulting as an environmental problem as fibre is beginning to build up in certain containers." One of the photographs depicting the Cassiar Transport Division was used for promotional posters with the following commentary: "The Cassiar Transport Division operates out of Whitehorse, Yukon Territory and is responsible for delivering the asbestos to the White Pass and Yukon Route terminal in Whitehorse. Fuel oil and supplies are backhauled to the mines. By the end of 1967, the fleet will consist of 65 tractor-trailer units, each of which will carry 23 tons of asbestos. The distance from Whitehorse to Cassiar is 357 miles and Clinton is 403 miles. During the past year, the Division's trucks traveled 2,213,534 miles and handled 75,100 tons, and the mileage to 3.5 million miles. This is a year-round operation and convoys arrive at the mine daily in spite of the long difficult haul. The Division currently employs 43 drivers and 35 mechanics and operates its own maintenance and rebuild facilities in Whitehorse. Over the years these men have established and enviable record of safety, cost and performance."
• Additional photographs that have been integrated depict the Asbestos wharf and its condition, 31 slides of wharf, maps of shipping routes, storage, forklifts, shipping trucks, and packaged asbestos.
• Also included in this file are two copies of a "Photo Survey - Cassiar Ton Units - "Amstelveld & Trojoland" on arrival to Brisbane & Sidney - August 1967." This collection of photographs is a part of an assessment of the efficiency of shipping and transport to Australia from Cassiar. Pictures include: loading, forklifts, storage, ripped bags, broken straps, wharfs, trucks, slings. There are accompanied annotations with each of the photos explaining the safety hazards or inefficiency of the situation. This report was found inside a box linked to James Hardie Industries Ltd. This company is not mentioned in the photograph annotations, but could be related to the report since James Hardie Industries Ltd. was a key player in asbestos mining and manufacturing in Australia.
• Collection of photos of roadside spill of Asbestos, depicting a man with shovel cleaning up on 5 June 1985
• Photos from Eternit Societe Anonyme (a European company that Cassiar shipped to) of packaged Asbestos in storage in 1967
• Collection of photos of James Hardie Coy. Pty. Ltd. shipment of asbestos that was not stored or transported effectively. Many photos depict broken bags as a result of inadequate storage and forklift punctures.
• Collection of photos of Cassiar/Stewart Road Proposal. Photos depict tests of the various stages of shipping and transportation process including forklift tests, Marineo Sling tests, stacking tests, durability tests, container loading tests, problems with current units etc. Also included is a marketing drawing if proposed shipping plan - drawn by "Stewart 1977."
• Photos of shipping process of Turners Asbestos Fibres Lmt. Photos depict lowering asbestos pallets onto barge with swing, and storage on barge.
• Collection of photos of a shipment of asbestos, but the bags of fibre are not identified as a Cassiar shipment therefore the location is unknown.