More than 1,000 individuals have been injured and over 200 have been killed after being subjected to toxic asbestos exposure in Libby, Montana. Federal prosecutors began a trial last week against W.R. Grace & Company, the mining company they blame for the devastating number of asbestos-caused injuries and deaths.
According to David Uhlmann, the Justice Department’s former top prosecutor of environmental crimes, there were more people injured and killed by the asbestos released from the vermiculite mines in Libby than in any other environmental crime. This fact, he says, makes it “the most significant environmental criminal prosecution that has ever been brought.”
W.R. Grace Responsible for Releasing Toxic Asbestos
Up until 1990, W.R. Grace & Company operated a Libby mining company that produced vermiculite that was used in thousands of American products, including insulation materials, flooring and roofing tiles, dry wall and pain products and brake pads. The vermiculite, however was contaminated with tremolite asbestos, the most deadly of all types of asbestos.
What is Tremolite Asbestos?
Tremolite asbestos is considered one of the most deadly forms of asbestos. While all asbestos minerals are elongated crystals, some varieties, including tremolite are needle-like. When the minerals are broken down in the mining process, they form a type of dust that can be easily inhaled.
Once inhaled, the needle-like tremolite fibers penetrate into the tissue lining the body’s vital organs, causing fatal diseases including mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer.
Defendant Corporation Allegedly Knew About the Asbestos
According to the prosecutors, despite their knowledge of the extremely toxic asbestos that contaminated the vermiculite, W.R. Grace executives continued to operate the mine, subjecting thousands of nearby residents and employees to dangerous, fatal diseases.
The federal prosecutors argue that W.R. Grace conspired to “conceal and misrepresent the hazardous nature of the tremolite asbestos.”
Affected Residents and Employees Speak Out
To date, there have been more than 200 deaths linked to the toxic asbestos exposure. Family members of some of those who have been killed spoke as the first witnesses in the trial that began last week. The surviving members testified of the devastation caused by the asbestos released from the vermiculite mine and stated that they had not been warned of the dangers of the asbestos dust that blanketed their neighborhood.
W.R. Grace Denies Allegations
Five W.R. Grace executives are named defendants in the asbestos lawsuit, all of whom face prison time. Despite the number of confirmed deaths and injuries linked to the asbestos exposure, the defendants continue to deny all allegations. In fact, W.R. Grace stated it “categorically denies any criminal wrongdoing,” in a statement issued in 2005.
If convicted, the company could face $280 million in criminal fines, amounting to twice the value of the profits of the mine. The trial is expected to last six months.
(Source: CNN)
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