A cement company operation near Helena, Montana is investigating possible asbestos contamination at its quarry and the company has told employees they should not report for work until instructed to do so.
Tremolite, an asbestos contaminant, may be found in portions of the cement company’s quarry. Test results from samples taken by the company are still pending. All forms of asbestos, including tremolite, cause a variety of cancers including mesothelioma and lung cancer.
Vermiculite mined near the northwestern Montana town of Libby also contained tremolite. A federal trial is under way in Missoula on allegations that mine operator W.R. Grace & Co. and five former company officials knowingly allowed human exposure to the asbestos, which was dispersed beyond the mine site to points all over the United States. The W.R. Grace mine closed in 1990.
For more information on the Helena, Montana quarry, see the following link: www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2009/03/16/ap6173604.html
Tags: asbestos, Mesothelioma, tremolite