Asbestos in Libby Declared Public Health Emergency
After reviewing the situation at the Libby asbestos site, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator, Lisa Jackson, declared that the conditions presented a significant threat to public health and declared the site a public health emergency. As a result, the northwest Montana town will now receive more than $130 million from the Obama Administration to assist with on-going clean up efforts and medical aid.
Over 200 deaths and 1000 illnesses have been attributed to exposure to asbestos that came from a nearby mine that produced asbestos contaminated vermiculite. Many insulation and soil products were then manufactured with the toxic minerals, and distributed locally, nationally, and globally.
Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral that was once widely used because of its amazing heat, fire, and errosion resistant properties. Many uses of asbestos were banned in the mid 1980’s as health risks associated with the substance became widely accepted. Exposure to asbestos causes many serious diseases, including asbestosis (breathing disorder caused by scarring of the lungs), mesothelioma (cancer of the lining of the lung, heart, or abdomen) and asbestos related lung cancer.
