Toxicological Perspective

In addition to an abundance of Vermiculite in the hills around Libby lie a similarly large amount of tremolite, a highly toxic form of asbestos. The tremolite lay undisturbed until the mining of Vermiculite released the deadly fibers into the air from their dormant dwelling under a layer of topsoil.

It is not known exactly how many people will be affected nor how long they will continue to be affected because it takes 10-40 years for symptoms of asbestos poisoning to reveal themselves.

History and Details

The history of the mine dates back to the 1881 when miners looking for gold first dug a tunnel into what would later be known as Zenolite Mountain (Schneider, 1999). Thirty eight years later part time miner Edward Alley was exploring the tunnel and happened upon what would later be identified as Vermiculite. This little known substance expands to up to 15 times its original size when heated, but is fire-proof. Therefore, it went into heavy production and was shipped around the world as an insulator. The company expanded rapidly and took over the town of Libby.

It was later sold to the W.R. Grace and Company in the early 1960s. The company again expanded production. By the 1980s, Zenolite Mountain produced 80% of the world's Vermiculite and the chemical was showing up in numerous more areas, including fertilizers. The company sold the nine in 1990 citing economic reasons, before which the disastrous affects of the asbestos poisoning were highlighted only to re-buy it in 1994 and promptly expel all Environmental Protection Agency Investigators.

The Vermiculite ore itself was contaminated as well when it was shipped throughout the country and has caused many deaths at additional plants.

Grace kept information regarding the deadly nature of the ore from the miners and even increased production while knowing the lethality of their product (Schneider, 1999). Hundreds of civil suits have been filed on behalf of victims and Grace pledged to pick up medical bills but they subsequently filed for bankruptcy. By filing for chapter 11, the company abandoned the medical and clean-up costs associated with the asbestos poisoning.

Cleanup

The cleanup of the town began in May 2000 directed by the Superfund Program, but W.R. Grace and Company filed for bankruptcy in 2001. The cleanup continues today operated by the EPA and focus on cleaning schools, homes and businesses of the carcinogenic asbestos dust (Broder, 2008.

Legal Proceedings

2003 Federal Decision
In 2003, a federal court in Montana ordered W.R. Grace and Company to pay $54 million to the EPA for investigation and cleanup costs associated with the asbestos contamination of Libby. However, none of the money has been pad by the company because of the bankruptcy proceeding (Broder, 2007).

2008 Federal Settlement
W.R. Grace and Company has agreed to pay the federal government $250 million dollars for environmental cleanup costs around Libby, Montana (Broder, 2008). The money will be directed to a special EPA account used for the cleanup. The settlement is the largest payment under the federal Superfund program ever (Broder, 2007). A federal bankruptcy judge approved the agreement on June 2nd (Lovering, 2008.

Montana State Settlement
Shortly after the Federal Government settled with [WR Grace and Company], the state of Montana proposed their own settlement. On June 3 ^rd , "the Montana Department of Environmental Quality announced a proposed $5.1 million settlement to provide additional money for future cleanup work in Libby cleanup" (Montana News Station.com, 2008).

Criminal Case
In February 2005, federal prosecutors cahrged W.R. Grace and Company and seven senior employees with knowingly exposing minors and residents in Libby to asbestos. Neither the 2003 or the 2008 settlements resolve the criminal case (#Broder, 2008]).

References

Broder, John. "$250 Million Settlement Over Asbestos is Announced"]. The New York Times, March 12, 2008.

Seattle Post Inteligencer Report on Libby.

Lovering, Daniel, Associated Press, "W.R. Grace's Asbestos Settlement Wins Approval, June 2nd, 2008.


Montana News Station, "State proposes settlement in Libby asbestos case". Updated: June 4, 2008 10:24 AM.

Schneider, Andrew. "A Town Left to Die." Seattle Post Intelligencer. November 18, 1999. Retreived on 12-21-06.

Schneider, Andrew. "Miners' Search for Gold led to Vermiculite." Seattle Post Intelligencer. November 18, 1999. Retreived on 12-21-06.