Asbest

Asbest (Russian: Асбе́ст) is a town in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Bolshoy Reft River (right tributary of the Pyshma) on the eastern slopes of the Ural Mountains, 70 kilometers (43 mi) northeast of Yekaterinburg. Population: 68,893 (2010 census); 76,328 (2002 census); 84,470 (1989 Soviet census). It was previously known as Kudelka (Sliver) (until 1928). Etymology The town is named for its asbestos industry. Administrative and municipal status Within the framework of the administrative divisions, it is, together with the work settlements of Malysheva and Reftinsky and five rural localities, incorporated as the Town of Asbest—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts. As a municipal division, Asbest and two rural localities are incorporated as Asbestovsky Urban Okrug. The urban-type settlement of Malysheva, together with three other rural localities, is incorporated separately as Malyshevsky Urban Okrug, and the urban-type settlement of Reftinsky is incorporated separately as Reftinsky Urban Okrug. Economy Today's Asbest is a large industrial center. Joint-stock company Uralasbest is the main industrial enterprise. The chrysotile (asbestos) mine adjacent to the town is the subject of published, peer-reviewed scientific investigations about its detrimental health impact on the local population, and is said to be the world's largest. The adjacent open-pit Uralasbest mine is said to be "seven miles (11 km) long and 1 to 1.5 miles (2.5 km) wide, (and) it is nearly half the size of Manhattan — and more than a thousand feet (300 meters) deep". Other factories include UralATI, Zarechny, Asbostroy, Asbestovskaya poultry processing plant, and a ferroconcrete production factory. Asbestos, bricks, porcelain, furniture, metal constructions, and other products are produced in Asbest. Education and recreation The town is home to the Uralasbest stadium, which seats ten thousand people. Educational facilities include music schools, a school of art, an Olympic school, an institute of science and research, professional schools, and colleges of mining and economics. There are two museums: a geological museum and a museum of local lore. History Asbest was founded in 1889 as Kudelka (Куделька). It was given its present name in 1928 and granted town status in 1933. Walter Arnold Rukeyser, an electrical engineer with extensive experience with asbestos in Quebec, worked in Asbest in 1929, and again in 1930. His memoir of his times there, "Working for the Soviets; an American engineer in Russia," was published in 1932 and reprinted in 1952. Following World War II, the Soviet Union operated the prisoner-of-war camps 84 and 314 near Asbest. In addition, from May 1950 until April 1953, up to 7700 inmates were imprisoned in the Bazhenovsky ITL gulag. Inmates had to work for the local asbestos industry; more than 15,000 died due to the conditions, including asbestos-related diseases and lack of clean water. References Notes Sources Областная Дума Законодательного Собрания Свердловской области. Областной закон №30-ОЗ от 20 мая 1997 г. «Об административно-территориальном устройстве Свердловской области», в ред. Закона №32-ОЗ от 25 апреля 2012 г. «О внесении изменений в Областной закон "Об административно-территориальном устройстве Свердловской области"». Вступил в силу со дня официального опубликования за исключением отдельных положений, вступающих в силу в иные сроки. Опубликован: "Областная газета", №81, 3 июня 1997 г. (Oblast Duma of the Legislative Assembly of Sverdlovsk Oblast. Oblast Law #30-OZ of May 20, 1997 On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Sverdlovsk Oblast, as amended by the Law #32-OZ of April 25, 2012 On Amending the Oblast Law "On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Sverdlovsk Oblast". Effective as of the day of the official publication with the exception of several clauses which take effect on a different date.). Областная Дума Законодательного Собрания Свердловской области. Закон №85-ОЗ от 12 июля 2007 г. «О границах муниципальных образований, расположенных на территории Свердловской области», в ред. Закона №107-ОЗ от 29 октября 2013 г. «Об упразднении отдельных населённых пунктов, расположенных на территории города Ивделя, и о внесении изменений в Приложение 39 к Закону Свердловской области "О границах муниципальных образований, расположенных на территории Свердловской области"». Вступил в силу через 10 дней после официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Областная газета", №232–249, 17 июля 2007 г. (Oblast Duma of the Legislative Assembly of Sverdlovsk Oblast. Law #85-OZ of July 12, 2007 On the Borders of the Municipal Formations on the Territory of Sverdlovsk Oblast, as amended by the Law #107-OZ of October 29, 2013 On Abolishing Several Inhabited Localities on the Territory of the Town of Ivdul and on Amending the Law of Sverdlovsk Oblast "On the Borders of the Municipal Formations on the Territory of Sverdlovsk Oblast". Effective as of the day which is 10 days after the official publication.). Kopyrin, Alexander Leonidovich (2012): Асбест. Куделька. Копи. ISBN 978-5-9903980-1-6 External links Official website of Asbest (in Russian) Directory of organizations in Asbest (in Russian)