Montana Creates New Asbestos Court

In 2001, the Montana Supreme Court passed a law that would establish a special claims court for individuals who developed asbestos-related diseases or died due to asbestos exposure from the now-defunct W.R. Grace and Co. mine in the town of Libby. However, the court was never activated.

But now, for the first time, the Supreme Court has ordered that the court be established and used to address remaining claims in a timely manner. It claims the number of asbestos-related cases is having a “detrimental impact” on a court system already overloaded, so the activation of a special court for this issue should bring cases to a resolution more quickly.

There are currently 548 asbestos cases in the Montana Supreme Court’s order, the court told the Great Falls Tribune. Not all are suing W. R. Grace. Other defendants named in these suits include both the State of Montana and the BNSF Railway as well as a number of insurance carriers. Now, these cases will be effectively consolidated, the article reports, all moved into a court with just one judge.

“I think it will allow for a fair and efficient management of these cases that involve particular challenges because of the nature of the disease,” said an attorney whose firm has represented about 2,000 individuals seeking financial compensation after being diagnosed with asbestos-related disease. “The new court formation allows the presiding judge to make sweeping decisions in managing the litigation, rather than on an individual basis.,” he adds, noting that because asbestos diseases are latent and develop in various levels of severity and at various times, prioritizing cases is naturally difficult.

The court will be used for pre-trial purposes, explains the Tribune article. If no settlement is reached and the need to go to trial happens, the case will go back to the original court at that point. If settlements are able to be reached on a large batch of related cases all at one time, then plaintiffs will receive a claim based on a determined scale.

“This is the only way for these parties, and the courts which are short on staff and money, to handle these cases from start to finish” considering the amount of time they take up on an individual basis, District Judge Elizabeth Best told the Tribune.

It took this long to activate the special court only because of W. R. Grace’s declaration of bankruptcy, which protected it from claims until it emerged from the bankruptcy in 2014. In the meantime, experts estimate that hundreds have died due to Libby asbestos exposure and thousands have been sickened. There is hope that by the 2030s, cases will begin to decline.

City Workers Followed Orders, Inhaled Asbestos

About twenty city employees in Austin, Texas say they were only following orders when, this past July, they entered a utility building, pulled down the ceiling, removed the furniture, and swept up the debris left behind. What they didn’t realize is that those orders put them in harm’s way as the building was already contaminated with asbestos.

The workers told a KXAN-TV reporter that they were not provided with the proper equipment to complete the job and are now fearful of the health ramifications of their exposure to the deadly toxin.

“I wore my dust mask for the majority of the day, but I did take it off from time to time during breaks. I guess that doesn’t really matter since they aren’t approved for asbestos,” one employee wrote on a form that was submitted to the city. “By the end of the day, I was drenched in sweat. My jeans and shirt were both dripping and completely covered in dust, dirt and asbestos, apparently.”

But, according to a KXAN investigation, these 20 workers aren’t the only city employees that have come face-to-face with asbestos while on the job in Texas’ capital city. The investigative team worked for six months to uncover two-year’s worth of incidents that resulted in similar exposure for some 200 Austin city workers in four different departments.

“Several city employees, who spoke with KXAN on a condition of anonymity because they fear retaliation, said individual departments cut corners, bypassed protocols and ignored warnings that could have prevented the asbestos disturbances and possible exposures,” said a reporter for the station.

City spokesperson David Green referred to these situations as “abnormal” but stopped short of taking the blame for the infractions that occurred.

After Green’s statement, the Office of the City Manager refused any further interviews with KXAN or any other news outlet and said it would be conducting its own “executive review” to look into the contamination scenarios. They promised to issue a statement by the end of the year.

But regardless of what the City Manager learns from the investigation, those 200 employees now face an uncertain future due to asbestos exposure. Once inhaled, asbestos dust can settle in the area around the lungs and cause the formation of tumors. Sadly, however, victims of asbestos exposure usually don’t know they’ve been affected by the dust until decades after they inhale the fibers.

It is likely the city will offer the employees annual medical testing, which is still too little, too late.

Can Bullfrog Eggs Treat Mesothelioma?

What do bullfrog eggs and the chemo drug Alimta® (pemetrexed) have in common? Well, it appears that both may be able to extend the lives of those stricken with malignant mesothelioma.

A group of Japanese researchers recently published a study in the public-access journal PLOS, outlining their work spurred by the growing interest in naturally-derived molecules as potential treatments for cancer. In particular, this research involved the use of sialic acid-binding lectin (cSBL), a protein derived from the eggs of bullfrogs. This protein can bind itself to cell membranes and degrade RNA, hence triggering anti-humor activity, the study showed.

Tests were done both in vitro (in test tubes) and in vivo (using mice). Some of the mice were treated with cSBL while others received Alimta. Yet another group of mice was treated with both simultaneously.

“The administration of cSBL significantly inhibited tumor growth in two xenograft [mouse] models, without any adverse effects,” wrote lead study author, Takeo Tatsuta. He also added that when both the cSBL and Alimta were administered, they had a synergistic effect on the mesothelioma cells to the extent not even seen with the standard drug treatment, which generally includes pemetrexed combined with the platinum-based chemo drug, cisplatin.

“These results suggest that cSBL has potential as a novel drug for the treatment of malignant mesothelioma,” concludes Tatsuta and his colleagues, adding that the use of the bullfrog eggs might actually be able to reduce the use of pemetrexed in the treatment of mesothelioma patients, hence eliminating some of the most debilitating side effects of this type of chemo, which is quite aggressive.

Indeed, researchers are turning more often to unusual and unexpected sources for cancer treatments, including natural products. Dr. Tatsuta’s team has also reviewed the use of the polysulfur aromatic alkaloids of the Pacific Sea Squirt in the treatment of mesothelioma. The alkaloids have shown to trigger cell death in mice with this form of asbestos-caused cancer.

Other researchers are using plants and other natural items in their studies, hoping to find treatments that are less harsh than chemo. Often, patients describe the side effects of chemotherapy as worse than their disease, and many individuals with cancer die as a result of the rigors of their treatment.

EPA Says Three PA Superfund Sites Look “Promising” for Redevelopment

The US Environmental Protection Agency recently submitted a list of 30 Superfund National Priorities Sites that they believe have the greatest potential for redevelopment.

Three of the sites on that list are in Pennsylvania and one of them is the controversial BoRit Asbestos Superfund Site in the town of Ambler in suburban Philadelphia.

The other two are the Metal Bank site in Northeast Philadelphia and the Crater Resources Inc./Keystone Coke Co./Alan Wood Steel Co. Superfund site in Upper Merion Township, also a suburb of Philadelphia.

The BoRit site (named after it’s most recent owner) long acted as a repository for discarded asbestos materials that came from a nearby asbestos products manufacturing plant.

That plant operated from the turn of the 20^th century until the late 1960s. For decades, the site was home to a huge asbestos waste pile that nearby residents referred to as “The White Cliffs of Ambler”.

The EPA added the site to the Superfund list in 2009 when it was determined that residents in the area could be exposed to airborne asbestos from the piles of toxic waste there.

According to an article in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, stream bank stabilization, installation of a soil cover across many areas of the site, and reservoir draining, re-grading, capping and refilling have all been accomplished at the 32-acre site, which is close to many homes.

“EPA selected the final cleanup plan for the site in 2017, which incorporates the previous cleanup with post-construction sampling, routine inspections, long-term operation and maintenance activities, and controls regarding approval of future use activities,” the article reports.

Now, say EPA officials, the BoRit site may just be ready for a new life. That’s a suggestion that will make area residents happy, as long as the agency is certain that no one’s health will be at risk should they build at that location.

“EPA is more than a collaborative partner to remediate the nation’s most contaminated sites, we’re also working to successfully integrate Superfund sites back into communities across the country,” said EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt in a press release about all the properties on the list.

Indeed, the agency bases its recommendations for revitalization of these locations on a number of factors, including previous interest from outside parties, land values, and access to transportation corridors.

“Today’s redevelopment list incorporates Superfund sites ready to become catalysts for economic growth and revitalization,” Pruitt stressed.

Asbestos Suits Often Name a Multitude of Defendants

If you were to research current asbestos lawsuits, it’s likely you will find that most of the suits include more than one defendant. In many cases, you’ll discover that some suits might name 20, 30, or even 40 companies or individuals as defendants. To many, that might seem like overkill but, in fact, there’s a good reason as to why this happens.

In asbestos suits, it’s rare that you will find the usual “two party” involvement, meaning one plaintiff and one defendant – the victim and the person(s), company, etc. that caused injury to the victim. But, where asbestos exposure is concerned, you’ll find that it’s not unusual for the victim to have been exposed in more than one place and to more than just one asbestos-containing product.

People (usually men) that worked (or currently work) in trades that exposed them to asbestos on-the-job often had more than one job where they were exposed OR worked with countless products that contained asbestos. These products were likely made by a number of different manufacturers.

For example, in individual in the construction field might have worked with a multitude of asbestos products including:

• Siding
• Shingles
• Cement
• Tiles
• Insulation
• Pipes

Take those six types of products and consider the number of years that person worked in construction (often decades!), and you’ll recognize that the number of exposures is huge. Furthermore, it’s likely that the insulation they installed, for example, was made by several different companies or the asbestos tiles they laid came from perhaps more than a dozen different manufacturers. In fact, the number of defendants that exposed one plaintiff to asbestos can be staggering.

Would it be easier to name just one defendant? Maybe the one that did the most harm? Likely, but it would also be a disservice to the victim. During a long tenure of employment, especially in the years leading up to about 1980, victims encountered dozens – maybe hundreds – of products manufactured by companies that knew asbestos was dangerous and that safer alternatives were an option. Yet they did nothing at all to solve this issue. They SHOULD be held accountable for their negligence, even if naming multiple defendants means it takes longer to organize the suit and get it to court or settlement.

Though naming multiple defendants might slow the process, the time required to craft a suit that will support a claim against each defendant will generally pay off in the long run as plaintiffs are more likely to receive what they are awarded by the courts or via a settlement, simply because that award money is spread out over several defendants. That means each will likely be responsible for only a portion of the award. That’s more palatable for those companies, who would likely appeal a large award if they were responsible for the entire amount.

It all comes down to securing good legal support and an attorney who is well-versed in asbestos suits involving multiple defendants. Experience in such suits means they will be crafted properly and will be organized in a timely manner so as to reach a verdict as soon as possible.

One-Fourth of Population in Asbestos Mining Region has Asbestosis

The Mafefe community in the Limpopo region of South Africa is pleading with its government to expedite programs that will help eliminate asbestos in their area.

Limpopo is a former mining region that has thus far been partially rehabilitated by the South African government, but Mafefe’s population has already been greatly affected by the legacy of mining, with about one-fourth of the population suffering from asbestosis due to toxic pollutants in the soil that permeates the region. (Some say that number is much higher.)

Experts point out that though mining in Mafefe ceased some time ago, largely ending in the late 1960s, asbestos is still visible literally everywhere throughout the area.

It’s not unusual to see children and adults lounging atop asbestos-filled rock and dirt, enjoying a picnic or playing games that kick up the soil and cause asbestos fibers to circulate through the air.

In addition, asbestos from area mines was used abundantly in building products manufactured there, so a vast majority of the structures in the community include asbestos roofs, siding, and other such products.

As the buildings age, so does the asbestos. That causes it to become crumbly and “friable”, which means that it easily flakes and can enter the air, where it can be inhaled by anyone working or living in the area.

Many of the buildings in Limpopo are actually made of asbestos-contaminated soil. The soil would be used to make bricks and the bricks were used in a variety of structures, including school buildings that house children each day.

Now, with minimal help from the government, the Mafefe community is “left alone” to deal with these issues, reports SABC news in a recent story that aired in the region.

While the bureaucrats are fixing some of the roads and constructing a few new school buildings, the legacy of asbestos poisoning continues and it’s likely that today’s Mafefe children will be tomorrow’s victims of diseases like asbestosis and mesothelioma.

It’s a sad truth that permeates this and other parts of Africa where asbestos mining once represented a boon to the local economy.

The miners themselves still deal with a high rate of asbestos disease development, but because there was a lackadaisical attitude about asbestos’ dangers until just a few decades ago, entire communities have suffered.

Finally, however, environmentalists are waking up and spreading the word about the dangers of the hazardous mineral, but for many it is simply too late.

“It was used in the construction of almost every household,” says Zakes Matime, an anti-asbestos campaigner who has become well-known amongst the Mafefe.

He explains that the miners would use “blue” asbestos – one of the most toxic forms of the mineral – to surface the road linking the Mafefe community and others after their mine dump was full and could hold no more.

He told a local newspaper that they only became aware they were “living in hell” after a doctor who worked for the Occupational Health Centre came to visit the region and alerted them to the dangers.

That was a few decades ago. Since then, the community has lost many loved ones, he laments.

Bill Will Ban Use of Asbestos in Ontario

A member of the Canadian parliament who hails from the Sarnia-Lambton region of Ontario has introduced a bill that will ban the use of asbestos in Ontario, and his compatriots are cheering his initiative, proclaiming that the motion can’t come soon enough, reports The Sarnia Journal.

“Nowhere is the devastation of asbestos more evident than in Sarnia, in Ontario,” said Mark Parent, executive director of the local Occupational Health Clinic for Ontario Workers.

“Few communities in Canada have experienced such needless suffering and loss as the workers of the Chemical Valley.”

The bill, if passed, will immediately ban the use of asbestos and/or any products that contain the toxic mineral. It would also ban any products containing asbestos from being imported into the province, officials explain.

In addition, the bill will demand the creation of a registry that lists any buildings owned or leased by the province that contain asbestos.

This would function as a forewarning for anyone doing construction work on these buildings as well as for first responders, including firefighters, who might come into contact with asbestos materials while on the job.

“When a fire call comes in, or an emergency response call, there would be an alert come up on the screen,” explained Parent, who added that widespread industrial use has left Sarnia with the highest rates of asbestos-related cancer in Ontario.

“Unless it is banned immediately, asbestos will continue to inflict pain and death, he said. “The safe use of asbestos is not practically achievable.”

There are others who would disagree with Parent and with the residents of Sarnia, Ontario. Many officials throughout the world – including in the United States – have resisted such bans as the Sarnians propose, intent on proving that some kinds of asbestos can be used safely or that minimal exposure is not a problem.

However, medical professionals have known for decades that any amount of exposure to toxic asbestos fibers can cause diseases such as asbestosis or mesothelioma. Hence, even casual use is a problem.

In addition, Canadians have long defended the use of chrysotile “white” asbestos, saying it is safe. Chrysotile was mined for decades in the province of Quebec, and it is only in the last five years that the mines there have shuttered their doors and officials have admitted that white asbestos is also toxic.

Asbestos and Other Toxins Present in Philly Schools

A recent newspaper investigation in Philadelphia has revealed that about two-thirds of the elementary schools in that district – the nation’s eighth-largest – are riddled with extremely serious environmental hazards, including mold, lead dust, and errant asbestos fibers that are apt to permeate common areas.

The Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News compiled their report first by reviewing several years of the district’s own records in order to gather information.

The newspapers reported that district records identified more than 9,000 environmental problems across the district since September 2015.

The newspapers also worked with school staffers to conduct some of their own environmental detective work, finding additional issues that might not have been profiled in district records.

Specifically, the papers recruited 19 staffers at some of the city’s most decrepit elementary schools to take samples at their respective schools, all in accordance with strict testing guidelines.

They used wipes to find mold or asbestos fibers as well as lead dust and they also took samples from the schools’ drinking water.

Samples were then sent to an accredited lab.

Once the sample results were merged with the district-generated records, the final report showed the following:

• Dangerously high levels of cancer-causing asbestos fibers were found on surfaces in classrooms, gymnasiums, auditoriums and hallways.
• Hazardous levels of lead dust showed up on windowsills, floors, and shelves in classrooms, including one for children with autism.
• Triggers for asthma like mold, mouse droppings and cockroaches were also widely detailed in the district’s own records.

One of the problems has to do with the fact that more than 90 percent of Philadelphia’s elementary schools were built prior to 1978, which was about the time that the use of lead-based paint was outlawed and other laws severely limited (but did not ban) the use of asbestos.

The district responded by saying the tests were flawed and that the problems are not as extensive as was reported by the newspapers.

But, at the same time, they claim to have a handle on the problems, despite money problems that plague this huge inner-city district.

“We want to be proactive in identifying, assessing, controlling, and preventing environmental health conditions in our schools,” said Francine Locke, the district’s environmental director. “So, we go above and beyond regulations when we collect data about dampness, mold, paint, and plaster damage,” she explained, noting that it will take $3 billion over the next 10 years to build new schools, replace roofs and heating systems, and finish all urgent repairs.

Whistleblower Says Lots of Asbestos at Youth Facility

An employee who used to work at the MacLaren Youth Correctional Institution in Woodburn, Oregon has filed a whistleblower suit against the state, proclaiming that both staff and students were knowingly exposed to asbestos.

The suit seeks $935,000 in damages.

John Neves of Silverton, Oregon claims that he spent about a year-and-a-half on the job there, supervising a group of six young offenders, helping them renovate and remodel cottages and other buildings on the sprawling premises of MacLaren.

It was all part of a $52-million-dollar upgrade at the aging facility, approved by the state in 2015.

According to a recounting of the specifics of the lawsuit in an article in the Statesman Journal, on Feb. 22, 2017, as Neves was working on the final cottage, his supervisor, Steve Babcock, ordered him to quickly replace panels he had pulled off the walls of the living area.

“Mr. Babcock explained that a tour of public officials was about to come through Kincaid Cottage and MacLaren Youth Correctional Facility did not want them to know about the asbestos in the walls,” the lawsuit reads.

“Plaintiff was shocked. He had never been told that MYCF knew there was asbestos in the walls of the living units he remodeled,” the suit continues. “Mr. Babcock said there was asbestos ‘all over the place.’”

Without any further discussion about what transpired, Neves – along with another employee – was put on administrative leave the next day.

Both were accused of helping or knowing about youth creating hiding spots for contraband in the units that were being remodeled.

Neves waited about a month and then filed a complaint with Oregon OSHA. He was then fired about four months later, just four days before OSHA cited Oregon Youth Authority (OYA) for two serious violations of the Oregon Safe Employment laws, the lawsuit points out.

The Youth Authority was also fined $500.

A subsequent investigation by OSHA proved that Oregon Youth Authority did not notify employees working on the renovation that they could possibly encounter asbestos while on the job.

The agency also failed to provide any sort of asbestos-related training as to how to handle the material should one come in contact with it or, simply, how to recognize it.

So far, OYA has not responded to the lawsuit or to media requests for a statement about their involvement.

Special Counsel – VA Hospital Exposed Staff to Asbestos

The U.S. Office of the Special Counsel announced earlier this week that the Management of the Department of Veterans Affairs hospital in Bedford, Massachusetts knew for years that there was an asbestos contamination problem at the facility yet kept the information concealed.

In a letter penned to the President as well as to members of the House and Senate veterans’ affairs committees, Special Counsel Henry Kerner wrote that multiple buildings at the Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial Veterans Hospital were contaminated with asbestos and that management had known about the problem since 2014, keeping it secret despite the dangers the toxin posed to those who worked or were hospitalized there.

“For years, the Bedford VA Medical Center failed to implement a robust safety inspection program to identify contaminated work spaces,” Kerner said in a statement to the media.

If it hadn’t been for the whistleblowers that alerted the Special Counsel about the issue, it’s likely it would still be a secret. However, after the reports by the concerned employees, the VA Office of Occupational Safety and Health launched an investigation of the Bedford facility.

What they found was alarming, reports the newspaper Stars and Stripes.

They located many instances where workers were made to risk exposure to airborne asbestos particles, though these situations could have been remedied with better management practices, the investigative report noted.

However, the VA maintains that the management did not break any laws, despite the findings of the OSHA inspections.

“VA believes that the findings do not show evidence that the medical center or its employees engaged in gross mismanagement and an abuse of authority,” the VA report states. “There was no indication of willful intent to harm workers or violate standards, rule or law,” the agency said in a recently released statement.

Thankfully, given the recent report, the VA is now taking the proverbial bull by the horns and making an effort to fix the problems, Kerner reports. A new permanent director for the hospital has now been appointed and she aims to implement recommendations made by OSHA in regards to the handling and identification of asbestos in the facility.

“The facility is now taking this problem seriously, monitoring employee health and carrying out more fulsome measures to ensure safety for employees and veterans,” Kerner stressed, adding that he was pleased that there was now a permanent director for the hospital.