The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) has produced a report on 28 U.S. sites that have processed asbestos-containing vermiculite from the mines of Libby, Montana. While the EPA identified a total of 245 U.S. sites that may have received the asbestos-containing vermiculite from Libby, the ATSDR narrowed its list down to 28 in which they would base their study on. All of the sites studied had processed a minimum of 100,000 tons of vermiculite from the Libby mines and had been mandated by the EPA to take further action at the site due to contamination.

The report contains information compiled while evaluations were done on sites that processed the vermiculite. The evaluations focused on potential past, current, and future pathways of exposure to asbestos associated with the Libby mines. The report summarizes the findings of the evaluations along with recommendations that local, state, and federal agencies can use to address similar sites. 

ATSDR started the evaluations of these sites per the Environmental Protection Agency’s request based on a report pertaining to Libby, Montana the ATSDR had done in 2002.

The 2002 report showed asbestosis mortality rates in the community as much as 40 to 80 times higher than expected; lung cancer mortality rates 20% to 30% higher than expected. Most of the asbestosis cases were former Libby mine employees along with employees from the facilities that processed the vermiculite from Libby. Moreover, the family members of some of these employees were also affected due to the asbestos fibers retained on the worker’s clothing.   

Based on their evaluations, the ATSDR concluded that three main groups of people experienced significant exposure to asbestos from the Libby mines; former employees, former employees’ families, and members of the communities that surrounded the processing sites. Although the Libby mine hasn’t been running since 1990, there is still believed to be residual asbestos located in settled dust as well as the soil surrounding the facilities where the vermiculite was processed.

In the report, ATSDR made recommendations on how to improve awareness about exposure to asbestos associated with these sites.   

Last Tuesday, large chunks of vermiculite were found in the Riverfront Memorial park of Libby, Montana. How they got there, however, remains a mystery. While checking the area where a pavilion is to be built along the Kootenai River, Mike Cirian, remedial on-sight project manager with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, found a 6-inch wide, 50-yard long line of vermiculite. It was found in a high traffic area that follows the length of the parking lot near the boat ramp and pavilion building site. He immediately sent vac trucks to the area for emergency cleanup and informed the City of Libby as well as the Libby Police.

Cirian believes the chunks were too big to come from underground and they didn’t come off any of the contractors’ trucks doing the multi-million Superfund asbestos cleanup. “I’m pretty sure it’s been there less than a couple weeks,” Cirian said. “This isn’t something you miss. These are large flake, silver-dollar-sized chunks of vermiculite.” The vermiculite had been tracked up and down the parking lot by vehicles, creating a 12,000-square-foot of space to be cleaned of potential contamination.

The park, formerly the old Export Plant site, has been cleaned at least three times in the past. One was a removal action performed by W.R. Grace; the second occurred during the building of the boat ramp; and the third was the EPA’s cleanup of the park, digging down as far as 18 inches. “If — and the emphasis is on the word ‘if’ — somebody is purposely dumping contaminated vermiculite, it’s a really serious situation of endangering the public,” said Libby Mayor Tony Berget. “People could potentially kick up and inhale the dust containing the deadly fibers while driving through the parking lot.”

Two years ago, Environmental Restoration’s parking lot received a similar mysterious deposit of vermiculite. However, it was reported that no one intentionally put it there. Cirian hopes that it is the same this time as well. He said he can’t speculate as to how the vermiculite appeared, but hoped it was a costly mistake, not something done intentionally.

Libby police chief Clay Coker said they are opening an investigation into last week’s spill, and could potentially punish an assailant under a felony Criminal Mischief law, which includes vandalism or tampering with property to endanger or interfere with its use, with damages over $1,000.“In the future, if we identify the suspect, we’ll not only prosecute, we’ll hand it off to other appropriate federal agencies that would also prosecute.” At this point there are no known suspects but the law enforcement is on the lookout for any suspicious activity. Coker said, “If we see anyone moving around after hours, and lo and behold they have a bag of vermiculite on the seat, we will stop and identify them.”

The Supreme Court today rejected an appeal made by W.R. Grace, the company that owned and operated the vermiculite mines in Libby, Montana.  The new decision allows the case against W.R. Grace to go to trial; in 2005, federal prosecutors accused the company and six of its executives of violating the Clean Air Act.

Grace claimed that under the specifications of the Act, asbestos was not clearly defined and did not necessarily pertain to substances released from the mine.  The claim was rejected by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

In April, the company agreed to a $3 billion arrangement that would allow it to emerge from bankruptcy without facing further asbestos liability.  Additionally, Grace must pay $250 million to the federal government for fees incurred when investigating and cleaning the vermiculite mines.

For more information, click here.

As a follow-up to the last post, Dr. Rebecca Cline, also of the Karmanos Cancer Institute, made a striking presentation at the recent ADAO Conference. Cline brought to light a point often left in the dark: the mental tolls of asbestos disease can be as harmful as the physical tolls.

Cline has done extensive research on the psychological impact of asbestos in the vermiculite-mining town of Libby, Montana. Cline called Libby "the worst environmental disaster in the United States." Because of the slow-moving nature of asbestos, the community has had the drawn-out responsibility of trying to make their neighbors fare well mentally and socially in the face of devastation. Cline said that in this situation, a community will either become charitable and altruistic or plagued with conflict. Libby, unfortunately, experienced the latter.

In interviewing residents, Cline found that people fell into one of three categories: those who readily believed the mine caused disease, those who eventually welcomed the idea, and those who are still in denial. She also uncovered that the residents were reluctant to talk about asbestos-disease because of economic implications; miners feared job loss and citizens feared a decrease in property value. This stigma prevented communication between residents and it created a divide between those affected by the disease and those who were not. Those not affected assumed that the disease was fake, a part acted by money-grubbing hoarders. Victims, consequently, were afraid to talk about asbestos for fear of social isolation.

The denial, division, and deception in Libby prevented citizens from obtaining the safety they deserved. It stunted progress towards asbestos regulation and weighed heavily on the minds of residents. Clearly, Cline's message rang true: the emotional effects of mesothelioma rival the physical effects.

Recently, insurance actuarial firms have estimated that the cost of asbestos claims will explode in coming years.  Currently, outlays for asbestos claims total $54 billion, and some firms predict it to reach as high as $275 billion, according to an article in the Ann Arbor Business Review.

Because the latency period of mesothelioma can be up to 50 years, it is expected that asbestos-related disease claims will continue to rise until 2018, when it will make a steady plateau.  The height of asbestos use in America came during the late '70s, so many victims have yet to be diagnosed with asbestos complications.  "There are 10,000 deaths a year and that number will climb," said Dr. Michael R. Harbut, co-director, National Center for Vermiculite and Asbestos-Related Cancers.