Libby, Montana is in a beautiful part of the country, but its reputation will forever be tied to mesothelioma and asbestosis. The town was the location of the W.R. Grace and Company vermiculite mine that contaminated its surroundings with asbestos. The entire area became an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Superfund site and was placed on the National Priority List in 2002 due to high levels of asbestos. This week the agency announced that work on a large segment of the cleanup work has been completed.
Railyards and Tracks Cleared of Mesothelioma-Causing Asbestos
In the years since the vermiculite mine shut down, thousands of residents of Libby have been diagnosed with mesothelioma and asbestosis, and hundreds have died. They were exposed to the asbestos-contaminated mineral at jobs in the mine itself, by workers unwittingly carrying it throughout the town and into their homes, and by trains carrying the ore to faraway places. Freight cars shed the vermiculite for miles, contaminating the surrounding area with tons of the toxic material.
The need to clean the asbestos from the area was urgent, as exposure to asbestos fibers can cause mesothelioma, asbestosis, and other serious diseases. The effort has been going on for decades, and now the specific area known as Operable Unit 6 has been deleted from the priority list.
Area No Longer Considered A Mesothelioma Risk
Speaking of the deletion of Operable Unit 6 from the priority list, EPA Regional Administrator KC Becker explained that no further cleanup of this specific area is required to protect people from mesothelioma. “This is the fourth time in four years we have removed a section of the site from the National Priorities List, since no additional EPA cleanup is needed. This milestone marks half of the Operable Units being deleted from the National Priorities List and demonstrates the progress EPA and our partners have made in the cleanup and restoration of properties in Libby.”
Echoing Becker’s words, Bureau Chief Matt Dorrington of the Montana Department of Environmental Quality said, “The deletion of OU6 from the National Priorities List is another accomplishment for the Libby Asbestos Superfund site and for Lincoln County. It’s always a celebratory day when DEQ and the EPA can announce that a portion of a Superfund site is cleaned up and protective of human health.”
If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma or asbestosis, the Patient Advocates at Mesothelioma.net can help. Call us today at 1-800-692-8608.
