In a recent development, a Canadian town called Asbestos is going to change its name to rebrand itself. The council of the city revealed that the association of the toxic material’s name is blocking investment for the town.
Asbestos is having a population of 7,000.
Hugues Grimard, the Mayor of the town, claimed that businesses are coming to the city owing to the association with the toxic name. There were several instances when investors had negative perceptions about the naming of the town, he added.
Origin of the Name
The town was famous for mining and manufacturing of Asbestos. The asbestos mine in the town was the largest producer of the material in the world. Therefore, the place named after the toxic material. The production of the substance stopped in 2011 after a severe controversy. Asbestos is responsible for diseases like cancer; as a result, most of the countries around the world banned the substance. Canada finally banned the production of the toxic material in 2018.
The council of the town revealed that they are going to change the name of the town as early as next year. The Mayor of the city confirmed that the municipality would consult the citizen of the town before naming it. Citizens are the representative of a city; therefore, we are going to ask them, Hugues Grimard added. The Mayor also revealed that the council would consider the cultural and historical importance of the place while naming it.
Reception
Once the development aired on TV and other platforms, the council got mixed reviews from the citizens. In the social media site Facebook, people are divided into their opinion and started commenting on the post shared by the council. Some people gave positive feedback and welcomed the decision. On the other hand, some people criticized the move and claimed that the development would not help the town to bring foreign investment.
