According to recent reports the Environmental Protection Agency of Ohio is asking for the assistance of the federal Environmental Protection Agency in forcing the cleanup of a known asbestos-contaminated site.

The former General Industries was apparently victim to a fire on July 3 of this year and burned for more than 16 hours. Since the fire that ripped through the entire complex, nothing has been done as far as cleanup of the remnants of the buildings existing on the property.

Ohio Environmental Protection Agency representative, Mike Settles, has stated that the owner of the property has made no attempt to rid the property of the asbestos-contaminated building rubble. Settles has stated that the owner, John Peshek, has basically neglected putting forth any effort at all in the removal of the debris.

Apparently a fence was put in place around the property after EPA field tests revealed high levels of asbestos particles at the site but due to the fact that there has been no visible signs of asbestos emissions Peshek cannot be yet cited for any particular violations.

Although Peshek has offered suggestions as to how he would clean up the site, none of those suggestions would comply with EPA standards. Aside from his phone calls to discuss those suggestions, Peshek has made no effort to dispose of the contaminated materials.

In August 2008 a study was released claiming that there was a possibility that individuals living in Libby, Montana may experience a rise over the next 20 years in the number of cases of diseases that are caused by exposure to asbestos containing materials. Deadly diseases such as mesothelioma and asbestosis are all too often the result of handling these types of materials.

According to Dr. Alan Whitehouse, who conducted the study, many of those individuals who may not have worked first-hand with the materials may still begin to see effects resulting from living within such close proximity to the toxic materials.

Eleven mesothelioma victims were examined by Whitehouse, all who contracted the illness not by working with the toxic fibers but through environmental and second hand exposure to the fibers.

According to reports Libby, Montana has been deemed one of the worst asbestos contamination areas in the United States.

Whitehouse claims that toxic fibers released from the vermiculite mine have been the cause of more than 200 deaths to Libby residents. These fibers contain a specific type of asbestos called tremolite.

According to the Libby Mayor, the town will soon be undergoing asbestos cleanup and will “one day be one of the healthiest and cleanest places to live in the United States.”

In July of this year parents were notified that the Thomas O’Brien Academy of Science and Technology would be closed for the school year due to what was thought to be a minor asbestos problem.

When the initial abatement process began on the Academy and its parent school, Griffin Elementary School, it was thought that it would be a simple remediation project but as work began it was discovered that the problem was much worse than officials had previously realized. According to the school districts spokesperson, Ron Lesko, “asbestos was found in places from which it was thought it had been removed two decades ago in the late 1980s.”

Students have since been relocated to the former Philip Schuyler Elementary School while renovations and abatement are being performed at the Academy. School officials are estimating that the school will not reopen until approximately the 2009-2010 school year.

What was originally thought to be a minor issue will end up costing the school district in upwards of $10 million. It is estimated that $3.8 million of that will be sent toward the asbestos removal alone, while another $8-$9 million will be spent on renovations.

Texas residents Curtis Blake Phillips and Beverly Babin filed a lawsuit in Jefferson County Court in early September on behalf of their late father, claiming that his employment at Mobile Oil was the cause of his asbestos related death.

The survivors of Omar Phillips allege that Exxon Mobile was fully aware of the harmful affects of working closely with asbestos and failed to acknowledge the danger to their father. Phillips was employed as a pipe fitter and welder for Mobile and his surviving children state that he was unaware that he was being exposed to toxic fibers that cause asbestos-related lung cancer.

In the lawsuit it is stated that the company failed to warn employees as to the dangers of asbestos exposure and failed to properly train their employees on safe handling of asbestos as well as other hazardous waste materials.

The plaintiffs claim that Exxon Mobile could have prevented their father’s death and are seeking compensation for not only funeral and medical bills but for the pain and suffering they endured as well.

Phillips and Babin are also seeking compensation for emotional trauma that they suffered in the past due to the diagnosis of their father’s asbestos-related lung cancer and following death.

On August, 27 2008 California builder Wassim Azizi was sentenced to 10 months in a California federal prison by U.S. District Court Judge Maxine M. Chesney. Azizi was tried and convicted on May 13, 2008 for three separate violations of the Clean Air Act.

The violations occurred between late 2002 and early 2003 in Hayward, California and involved the razing of a two-story wooden building.

Azizi is said to have illegally demolished a building that contained “significant amounts of asbestos,” possibly exposing both residents and workers in the near-by area to asbestos from airborne dust that contained asbestos fibers. The possible exposure incident set-off an investigation by the Environmental Protection Agency who had evidence showing that Mr. Azizi was not in compliance with the Clean Air Act during demolition of the Hayward building.

The Clean Air Act is in place to regulate the removal and disposal of asbestos containing materials. Mr. Azizi allegedly violated more than one of the work practice standards enacted under this act, including failing to obtain the proper permits for removal of an asbestos-containing building. Azizi also failed to keep the asbestos-containing materials wet, failed to store the material in air tight containers, and disposed of materials in an unauthorized location.

Azizi’s sentence is set to begin December 1, 2008.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has ordered the city of Winslow, AZ to pay $240,000 in restitution after the city violated provisions of the Clean Air Act. The initial complaint was filed in Winslow in 2007 after the improper demolition of at least nine city buildings known as the Apache Apartments. City Administrator John Roche and former Apache Apartments owner William Christie were named in the complaint, which alleged that both men supervised the illegal demolition and improper asbestos removal and disposal.Winslow residents remain concerned about the potential for asbestos-related illness, including asbestosis and mesothelioma cancer. Officials claim that asbestos was most likely released into the air at various stages of the demolition and also after improper disposal.  

Charles Victoria of Parkville, MD will spend six months on home detention after conspiring to improperly remove asbestos from the former Woodville State Hospital in Collier, MD.Victoria also received three years probation for violation of environmental laws and obstruction of justice.Victoria, a licensed asbestos abatement professional, was hired to oversee the removal and proper disposal of the contaminant. After law enforcement discovered that Victoria was planning to illegally abate and dispose of asbestos-containing materials, they stepped in to investigate, and Victoria made continuous “misrepresentations” to law enforcement officials regarding his plans to remove the toxin.Victoria was sentenced on September 12th.  

Homeowners who were forced to evacuate from their homes due to Hurricane Gustav should be extremely careful upon returning home due to the threat of asbestos exposure. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)  has issued a warning to all homeowners and warns that asbestos-containing materials found in the home, including attic insulation and roofing tiles, may have released asbestos fibers & dust into the air. Over 35 million U.S. homes contain asbestos products, and any residence or commercial building that was built before the advent of asbestos-usage regulations in the early 1980s most likely harbors high levels of asbestos. Any homeowner who returns to a residence that has sustained significant structural damage is encouraged to wear a mask that covers their mouth and nose to prevent inhalation of errant asbestos fibers.  

The Director of Public Prosecution in the Australian James Hardie asbestos scandal has decided not to invoke criminal charges. James Hardie, a global fiber cement siding and backerboard manufacturer, was exposed for “underfunding”a $1.5 billion dollar trust that was set up to compensate former employees that had been afflicted with asbestos-related disease, including mesothelioma.

A “false statement” regarding the trust made to the Australian Stock Exchange prompted an inquiry into the fund. James Hardie stated that the money within the trust was more than enough to compensate current and future claims. After deeming the fund inadequate, the Australian Securities and Investment Commission demanded an investigation and pushed for criminal charges. The ASIC filed a civil suit against James Hardie in 2001.

The ASIC is requesting that 10 of the current James Hardie executives be “banned” from management duties and receive fines after lying to the Australian Stock Exchange officials.

Many former James Hardie workers developed asbestos-related disease, including mesothelioma cancer, as a result of exposure from asbestos-containing construction materials manufactured by the company.

28-year old Leigh Carlisle has died of mesothelioma cancer. She is the youngest person on record in both the UK and the US to have ever died of mesothelioma.

Carlisle was diagnosed at age 26 after suffering from severe abdomial pain and visiting several doctors who were initially unable to discern what was wrong with her.

Carlisle believes that she may have been exposed to errant asbestos fibers from a factory that manufactured asbestos materials while she walked to school as a child.

Despite the lack of confirmation regarding the cause of Leigh Carlisle’s mesothelioma cancer, her battle has publicized the concern about asbestos exposure in UK schools.

Michael Price, Carlisle’s boyfriend, said that Leigh was an “inspiration” to those who knew her. Rather than flowers at her memorial service,Carlisle requested that people make donations to a cancer center in her honor in an effort to help those still battling cancer.