This is just a quick write-up of something I found interesting happening in Canada. After 180 years of being known as Asbestos …
Site used to be one of the largest asbestos mines in the world but residents now want it to be called Val-des-Sources
Residents in the Canadian town of Asbestos have voted to rename their community to distance it from the once-ubiquitous mineral now recognised as being extremely poisonous and linked to lung and other cancers.
The town, formerly home to one of the world’s largest asbestos mines, voted 51.5% in favour of changing its name to Val-des-Sources over five other options, according to results announced on Monday (19 October, 2020) from a four-day referendum.
The new name refers to its location at the confluence of three lakes and represents “the fusion of our history and our roots”, according to the town’s description.
The community, 93 miles (150km) east of Montreal and home to about 7,000 people, was built in the late 1870s after the discovery of an asbestos deposit led to the creation of the mine.
Canadian town of Asbestos chooses new name
Val-des-Sources was chosen among a field that also included Phénix, after the mythical bird reborn from its ashes, L’Azur-des-Cantons, a nod to the azure color of a local lake, and Jeffrey-sur-le-Lac, for the farmer who founded the mine in the 1870s.
The new name, the town says, “is the fusion of our landscape and our roots.”
Per Wikipedia:
A name change plan was approved by the municipal council in November 2019, with the new name chosen by a public poll.[13] On September 14, 2020, the mayor announced that residents would be able to vote to rename the town to either Apalone, Jeffrey, Phénix or Trois-Lacs.[14] The choices were not well received, and more names were added to the list.
The referendum was held in October to allow the townspeople to choose between six names: L'Azur-des-Cantons, Jeffrey-sur-le-Lac, Larochelle, Trois-Lacs, Val-des-Sources, or Phénix.[15] The referendum results were announced on October 19, 2020. 51.5% of voters chose the name Val-des-Sources in the third round of a preferential ballot,[16] although the name change must be approved by both the Commission de toponymie du Québec and the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing before it takes effect.[17]