Even Forests Are Contaminated with Asbestos in Libby, Montana

Researchers at the University of Montana have detected asbestos dust on the bark of trees in the Kootenai National Forest near the closed vermiculite mine in Libby, Montana. They said Forest Service personnel performing tasks such as building fire lines and measuring trees may be exposed to airborne asbestos when doing work in the forest near the former mine.

Workplace exposure to asbestos is associated with significant increases in asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lungs, compared to the general population..

The findings are relevant to people who work in the forest and people who go to the forest for recreation within about five miles of the mine, they said. Much of the land surrounding the mine is owned by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and private logging companies

Because of the widespread asbestos contaimination and high incidence of asbestos-related disease, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has declared a public health emergency in Libby, Montana and the surrounding area. Lincoln County, Montana has the third highest age-adjusted death rate of mesothelioma in the U.S.

The research was published in the Journal of Environmental and Public Health