Asbestos Warnings Weighed Judge To Decide If Homeowners Get Told Of Possible Hazards

A Spokane judge will decide next week whether to grant the plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit against the world’s largest maker of specialty chemicals a preliminary injunction designed to warn the public about the dangers of one of the company’s products.

The Spokane law firm of Lukins & Annis wants Superior Court Judge Kathleen O’Connor to issue an emergency notice to Washington state homeowners informing them of the possible existence and hazard of asbestos in Zonolite insulation, which was made by the Maryland-based company W.R. Grace & Co.

Vermiculite ore from Libby, Mont., was used to manufacture the insulation at plants in Spokane and as many as 200 other cities across the country for more than 60 years. Grace purchased the Libby mine and the Spokane plant in the 1960s.

Grace closed the Spokane plant in 1973 after the Washington Department of Labor and Industries found airborne asbestos contamination several times greater than legal limits.

“Homeowners have a right to know,” said Lukins & Annis attorney Darrell Scott. “We are merely seeking a modest advisory which would be supervised by the court.”

Scott said the attorneys for the plaintiffs have volunteered to pay for the cost of the public notices.

But W.R. Grace attorney Lawrence Flatley told O’Connor the company’s product poses no risk to the public.

“We’ve heard testimony all week that there is no risk to human health when exposed to low levels of asbestos or other dusts,” Flatley said.

Flatley also said the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has yet to complete studies done on asbestos-laced vermiculite found in the insulation once manufactured by the company.

Flatley said issuing a notice would be irresponsible and could cause undue panic among homeowners.

Lukins & Annis also has a pending class-action suit against W.R. Grace. The suit seeks to represent the interests of roughly 26,000 people who live or used to live in Libby, where W.R. Grace operated a vermiculite mine from 1963 to 1990.

Scott filed the suit in Montana state court in January. The suit seeks a long-term medical monitoring program, paid for by W.R. Grace, to ensure the early detection of asbestos-related illness in anyone who has lived in Lincoln County. He said those illnesses include asbestosis and lung cancer.

Officials from W.R. Grace declined further comment outside of court on Thursday, citing the pending litigation. The company alone had 11 representatives in court.

The Libby mine produced vermiculite for insulation, potting soil and other purposes. The mine’s vermiculite, however, is laced with tremolite asbestos, which can be deadly if inhaled in large amounts.

Lukins & Annis’ lawsuit says the company contaminated thousands of homes in the state long after the company was aware of its toxicity.

The company chose not to put warnings on the bags of Zonolite Attic Insulation to protect its profits, the suit claims, even though W.R. Grace knew vermiculite ore used to make Zonolite contained more than 20 percent tremolite asbestos, long known to cause several fatal cancers.

Last year it was reported that hundreds of Libby residents had died from asbestos-related diseases or suffered from such diseases. The sickness was attributed to asbestos fibers released in the air by the former W.R. Grace mine, which the company sold in 1990.

In September, the EPA said that air monitors in five locations around Libby, including Town Hall and two schools, showed no measurable levels of tremolite asbestos.

Wendy Thomi, the community involvement coordinator for EPA in Libby, previously said there’s a lot of scientific debate over how much asbestos it takes to cause lung cancer or mesothelioma, a lethal tumor in the lining of the chest or abdominal wall.

Also assisting Lukins & Annis in the case is Pleasant, S.C., attorney Robert Turkewitz, who has extensive experience in representing asbestosrelated cases.

Turkewitz estimated that anywhere from 18,000 to 55,000 homes in Washington could be outfitted with Zonolite insulation.

The plaintiffs want to be able to run media advertisements, postings on Web sites and send fliers to hardware stores letting consumers know about the possible presence and hazards of Zonolite insulation in their homes.

“Almost 90 percent of homeowners are unaware of the asbestos in attic insulation and the risk it poses when disturbed,” Turkewitz said. “Homeowners need to know this.”