Massachusetts
Massachusetts has naturally occurring asbestos deposits on the eastern and western sides of the states. One deposit site is located near the Quabbin reservoir, and the other is located in the Pittsfield area. As of 2007 there are still six officers that are under indictment for knowing of the dangers of asbestos exposure from an operative asbestos mine, but not warning the public or trying to protect the community in any way. The dangers of asbestos exposure can result in death. Two conditions that are directly related to asbestos exposure are asbestosis, where the patient suffers from reduced lung function and scar tissue in the lung, and mesothelioma, a cancer that is directly linked to exposure to carcinogenic asbestos fibers. This is a malignant cancer, which means that it will continue to grow and spread as long as it goes unchecked. The survival rate of mesothelioma is not a good one. Massachusetts ranks #9 in mesothelioma deaths in the US, and #8 for total asbestos related deaths, for a state of this size this is quite a rank to hold.
Steel Foundries
In Massachusetts, the steel foundries employed asbestos heavily in their operations, up to and including asbestos fibers in the outfitting, such as gloves, bibs and coveralls, to keep the workers safe from the intense heat that they had to face on a daily basis. The furnace surrounds would be fireproofed with asbestos, as well as multiple other surfaces throughout the foundry. Fire risk is high in a steel foundry, and they equipped the buildings accordingly with large quantities of asbestos.
Power Generation Plants
With so many extremes of temperature in a power generation plant and multiple sensitive pieces of equipment that are employed to keep the plant regulated, asbestos was used widely to keep the equipment and wiring insulated and the employees safe from exposure to extremes and exposure to electrical components. As asbestos insulation ages it has a tendency to crumble or fray. When this deterioration occurs, the employees are exposed to the danger of inhalation of free floating asbestos debris.
Construction workers in Massachusetts are of high risk for asbestos exposure as well. Massachusetts is a state that is over four hundred years old, and for much of its history asbestos was the wonder product that would insulate and fireproof in an economic way, and as it was pressed into tiles for ceilings and floors as well as incorporated in home insulation and wall board, it is present all over the state. Though the workers that performed the installations are at risk of developing exposure related ailments, so are those that performed the demolition. The workers that remodeled or tore down existing structures from schoolhouses to townhouses have inhaled dust and debris that was laced with asbestos fibers. Before the dangers were brought to light and the EPA took action in the inspection and abatement of asbestos the demolitions that were undertaken would spread asbestos fibers throughout the neighboring areas of the site and the workers would even bring the fibers home clinging to their clothing and hair, exposing their families.
If you or someone that you know has been exposed and is suffering from health problems that are tied to the asbestos exposures in their past, they should contact someone that is trained in the legal remedies that they are entitled to in order to help them get the best possible care for their condition. As these conditions can take decades to reveal themselves, it pays to monitor your health carefully.
Last modified: December 28, 2010.
