Several hundred individuals that work for the Idaho Department of Labor received an unexpected administrative leave last Friday afternoon when their building was evacuated and they were sent home due to the discovery of dangerous asbestos dust inside the facility.

The Idaho Statesman newspaper reported that the building at 317 W. Main Street in downtown Boise will remain closed indefinitely.  Asbestos fibers were discovered after a crew of construction workers worked on the building’s geothermal system Thursday evening. The next morning, Idaho Department of Labor officials reported finding some sort of white powder near the construction zone and, after testing, they determined that the powder was indeed asbestos. The fourth floor employees were immediately evacuated and then the remainder of the building was ordered closed as well.

Bob Fick, Department of Labor spokesperson, reported that employees who work inside the contaminated building will likely remain on leave until the amount of asbestos in the building can be determined and until the department figures out the specifics of asbestos clean-up or abatement so that it is safe for all to return.

There was no word as to what kinds of materials caused the dust to form, but in buildings of similar age, asbestos was often used in items such as insulation of various sorts, floor and ceiling tiles, drywall tape and other adhesives, cement, and a variety of other construction products. It is necessary to protect individuals from asbestos exposure as inhaling the mineral can lead to serious lung problems including mesothelioma, a cancer that attacks the lining of the lungs, abdomen, or heart.

A group of researchers at the University of North Carolina (UNC) has reported that once-promising cancer drugs that were dismissed due to problems with high toxicity, poor stability, and low solubility could be revived again using nanotechnology.

According to a press release by the university, the group has concluded that a nanoparticle formulation of certain cancer drugs might be safer and more effective than those drugs in their original design, potentially bringing back drugs that seemed to be on the right track but failed to pass trials due to the aforementioned issues.

Specifically, the team of researchers worked with the chemotherapy drug known as wortmannin, which had shown promise in the treatment of ovarian, head and neck, cervical, and small cell lung cancer. They reported their findings in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The nano-method “decreased toxicity and increased stability, solubility and effectiveness,” said Andrew Wang, one of the senior authors of the University of North Carolina study. “Additionally, nanoparticle wortmannin can improve the efficacy of radiotherapy dramatically and is more effective than the most commonly utilized chemotherapeutics.”

A discovery by a team of University of Ottawa researchers, published in this month’s scientific journal Nature, could eventually have a huge impact on how doctors will treat diseases including cancer, stroke, and heart disease, says an article in the Vancouver Sun.

The group had been working on the specifics of protein synthesis; namely, how cells make proteins in environments where there is little oxygen. Though scientists have long known that cells make proteins in the presence of oxygen, how they did that in conditions with little oxygen remained a mystery, the article explains. The Ottawa researchers have now solved that mystery.

“It’s a tremendously important discovery in understanding how life without oxygen works,” said Dr. Stephen Lee, a professor in the university’s department of cellular and molecular medicine. “There’s a huge amount of research, hundreds of thousands of papers. But still nobody has discovered how we make the basic building blocks of life in these conditions. That’s what we discovered.”

Cited for exposing workers to asbestos, Castle Metals in Franklin Park, Illinois – near Chicago – recently paid $63,500 in OSHA-imposed fines for what the agency deemed “serious health violations”.

According to an article in the Chicago Sun Times, the manufacturer – part of A.M. Castle, a publicly traded company with headquarters in Oak Brook – negotiated the fees down from the more than $127,000 that was originally proposed for the 22 violations that directly exposed approximately 121 employees to the hazardous material, which was once used abundantly in manufacturing plants like Castle Metals.

A complaint from an employee prompted an inspection of the company facilities by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). What the OSHA representative found was a blatant disregard for the rules governing the handling of asbestos, which can cause lung-related diseases such as asbestosis and mesothelioma cancer.

Violations included: failing to determine the presence, location and quantity of asbestos-containing or presumed asbestos-containing material; not putting warning labels on asbestos-containing piping; not providing a regulated area for asbestos removal operations; not monitoring employees and the work area for asbestos exposure during the removal process; and not using a high-efficiency vacuum to collect debris and dust during removal, according to the OSHA report.

The OSHA citation also noted that no employees were trained in proper asbestos handling and no protective clothing was provided for the employees in the Franklin Park plant. In addition, there was no decontamination area available for those who worked with the toxic material and may have had it on their hair and clothes. Such contamination opens the door to the possibility of secondary asbestos exposure among employees’ family members who may come in contact with the fibers when the employee returns home covered in hazardous dust.

Castle has agreed to correct any violations but did not admit any wrongdoing.

The Montreal-based Chrysotile Asbestos Group, a pro-asbestos lobbying group formed in 1984 and backed by the Canadian government, announced this past weekend that they would be dissolving. It’s a decision, say business experts, that indicates the country’s long-time asbestos mining industry is in big trouble.

According to a report in the Ottawa Citizen, the institute submitted its notice to disband to the federal government and an announcement as to their plans was published in the Canada Gazette, an official government publication that profiles new laws and provides other public information to the citizens of Canada.

While pro-asbestos citizens and industry leaders may be mourning the dissolution of the Chrysotile Institute, which has long supported the asbestos mining industry in Quebec, those who’ve been rallying for a ban on the mining of the mineral and its export to Third World countries couldn’t be happier with the news.

“I see it as a real tipping point in the movement to get Canada out of the asbestos industry,” said MP Pat Martin. “It’s just another demonstration of the death rattle of the asbestos industry in this country.”

Martin, formerly involved in the asbestos industry, has been one of the most outspoken members of the Canadian Parliament in regards to an overall asbestos ban, not just in Canada but worldwide. He believes it was no coincidence that he found out about the organization’s dissolution on International Workers’ Memorial Day, a day set aside to honor the memory of those workers who were injured or killed on the job, including thousands of Canadians who have died of mesothelioma cancer due to asbestos exposure.

“I’ve lost an awful lot of friends and colleagues to asbestos in my time as an asbestos miner and a carpenter in the building trades,” Martin said. “It was very poignant for me to learn that (the institute was closing) on the very day of mourning for injured and fallen workers with the flags at half mast – it was very, very fitting.”

The Chrysotile Institute has long claimed that the type of asbestos mined in Canada – known as “white” or Chrysotile asbestos - is safe as long as it is handled and managed properly.However, the International Agency for Research on Cancer, affiliated with the World Health Organization, has conducted extensive asbestos-related research and has determined that asbestos “is carcinogenic in all its forms.”

Currently, both of Quebec’s chrysotile mines are closed though one is awaiting news about a loan from the government that will allow it to reopen. Thousands hope that day will never come.

The mayor of Massillon, Ohio has announced that the city’s oldest operating fire station will close on May 1 because the poor condition of the building represents a major health risk for firefighters and others who work inside.

According to an article in The Independent, the 61-year-old fire station, which has been in continual use since it was erected in the 1950s, contains flaking asbestos tiles, lots of mold, peeling paint, and other hazards that could affect the health of those who spend time inside.

“It’s a health and safety issue,” said George Maier, Safety-Service Director for the city of Massillon. “It’s a 1951 building. It’s been deteriorating. The city has not had the funds or the resources to put into the facility it deserves to maintain it.”

Maier noted that the suspended ceiling recently fell down but, luckily, no one was hurt. The flaking asbestos tiles throughout the building also represent a major hazard. Airborne “friable” asbestos, caused by the presence of old and damaged tiles, can be inhaled by those working inside the deteriorating building. Potentially, the firefighters and other staff members face the risk of developing an assortment of asbestos-related diseases including lung scarring, asbestosis, mesothelioma, and other kinds of cancers.

Fire Chief Thomas Burgasser wants the public to know that the problems with asbestos and other toxins is not the result of poor maintenance on the part of his firefighters. He says they clean the station weekly. The problem, Burgasser notes, is much more serious and it just wasn’t getting any better.

“Black mold — you just don’t take a little bit of bleach and get rid of that,” he said. “It’s the same with asbestos. When these tiles flake you have to abate those things. Quite frankly, we don’t have the dollars to do that.”

In order to facilitate sprinkler installation in the Senate subway tunnels underneath the U.S. Capitol building, contractors recently had to remove asbestos. The problem, says the union that represents the Capitol police officers, was that no one told the officers stationed there that day that asbestos removal was taking place.

According to an article in The Hill, the asbestos abatement occurred on weekends between February and April. The office of the Architect of the Capitol (AoC) claims that notices were sent to all senators’ and committee offices, support offices, the Capitol Police and other building occupants. The notices stated that all contractors were licensed abatement professionals and that work would be supervised by the EPA. In addition, notices explained that the areas in question would be sealed off and that constant air monitoring would be taking place.

However, a statement from the Capitol Police union claims that the officers were not notified of the asbestos hazards and that any requests to reassign officers posted in the area of the abatement were ignored. The officers were told that the removal work was safe and that warning signage would be posted where dangers existed. But, says the complaint, officers continued to be assigned to areas within close proximity of the construction work without being given proper protective gear to keep them from inhaling dangerous asbestos dust, which can cause diseases like pleural mesothelioma and asbestosis.

Capitol Police spokeswoman Lt. Kimberly Schneider says the department didn’t do anything wrong. “The USCP is unaware of any requirement for an employee who does not work in or who works near a contained area to have protective gear,” she wrote. “Officers were warned not to enter the contained area, and the Capitol Police requested and were provided assurances from the AoC that those conducting the asbestos removal complied with the highest health and safety standards.”

But a witness maintains that there were no signs, just yellow caution tape that restricted access to the area. The witness also observed AoC employees carrying “buckets of water into the men’s bathroom from the site area, which was also of concern since that may have been used in their decontamination when leaving the site.”

Asbestos exposure problems are not knew to the U.S. Capitol. About six years ago, workers from the Capitol’s power plant crew alleged exposure caused by work on the infrastructure. At that time, the employees said the area was so thick with asbestos that they could pick it up and put it in their pocket.

This week, three U.S. Congressmen introduced the Furthering Asbestos Claims Transparency Act, which will require that all asbestos bankruptcy trusts “disclose claims and exposure allegations while providing third-party discovery in asbestos civil lawsuits.”

According to a Legal Newsline article, the bill was presented by Republicans Ben Quayle of Arizona and Dennis Ross of Florida along with Jim Matheson, a Democratic congressman from Utah. It specifically addressed the companies that declared bankruptcy due to excessive asbestos-related litigation costs and then proceeded to set up trusts to compensate asbestos victims with diseases such as mesothelioma. Of the 90 U.S. companies that have filed bankruptcy for asbestos-related reasons, about 60 set up such trusts. This includes mega companies such as Owens-Corning, Armstrong World, and Babcock & Wilcox.

“The trust fund system originated to resolve present and future asbestos injury claims for victims deserving of compensation,” said Leigh Ann Pusey, president and CEO of the American Insurance Association. “Today, the system is fraught with fraud and abuse to the detriment of legitimate claimants. This legislation’s transparency measures protect claimants’ confidentiality while ensuring the continued viability of the asbestos trust fund system.”

The Government Accountability Office has reviewed trust operations in the past and tends to disagree with Pusey’s statement. Their 2010 report noted that no fraud was found in the system. However, that same report noted that the trust funds did indeed “operate in secrecy.”

“Although the possibility exists that a claimant could file the same medical evidence and altered work histories with different trusts, each trust’s focus is to ensure that each claim meets the criteria defined in its (trust rules), meaning the claimant has met the requisite medical and exposure histories to the satisfaction of the trustees,” the report noted.

Two states – Ohio and Oklahoma – have proposed similar legislation. Oklahoma’s senate passed their bill in March and Ohio is waiting for senate approval to come shortly.

Late last week, a 10-year survivor of peritoneal mesothelioma testified before the U.S. House of Representatives’  Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee, asking them to fund crucial research that would allow victims of asbestos-caused cancer to potentially live a longer life, even after a devastating mesothelioma diagnosis.

According to a press release by the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation (MARF), Bonnie Anderson – who functioned as a representative of MARF and a member of the mesothelioma community – appeared before the committee to request that they continue to fund mesothelioma research through the National Institutes of Health and the National Cancer Society. The funding, which has decreased consistently, would help researchers explore new treatments and would assist in implementing clinical trials to test new drugs.

Because there is only one FDA-approved drug designated specifically for the treatment of mesothelioma, notes Anderson, the funding of clinical trials is more important than ever. Anderson is a prime example of the good things that can come from successful clinical trials. At the time of her peritoneal mesothelioma diagnosis 10 years ago, she was given a grim prognosis. Doctors told her she had only 6 months to live.  She enrolled in a clinical trial, which has added years to her life – extra time with her family that would have been thought impossible just a few years ago.

“I participated knowing I could face devastating side effects but with the hope I could help doctors learn how to treat mesothelioma and possibly add precious minutes to my time with my family,” explained Anderson.

Unfortunately, however, funding from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) has decreased rather than increased over the last few years. In 2010, notes the press release from MARF, NCI spent $8.3 million for the research of mesothelioma. This was a 6 percent decrease from 2009 and a 14 percent decrease from 2008.

“This steady decline in funding terrifies me as a patient anxiously awaiting development of new treatments,” stressed Anderson. At this juncture, unless researchers have the funds to continue, patients like myself will have run out of treatment options and will die from this disease.”

An asbestos-filled building that was functioning as overflow housing at the University of Colorado in Boulder will be coming down shortly, announced university officials earlier this week.

According to an article in the Boulder Daily Camera, the building – known as the College Inn – was far from the main campus but was the go-to location for freshman who needed housing but couldn’t find it on campus during the the college’s times of highest enrollment . Though the 77,000-square-foot structure is now vacant, it was – at one time – filled to the brim with students who were unaware that they were living in a building laden with dangerous asbestos materials.

When the college’s Environmental Health and Safety Commission evaluated the College Inn in 2008, it was determined that there were large amounts of asbestos present and that students had been living in rooms where they were potentially exposed to the material. The commission determined that to allow students to continue to live there, they would have had to draft lease agreements that would require a stipulation that the renters not touch the “popcorn” ceilings in each room. The ceilings are fashioned from acoustical plaster that was traditionally contained asbestos.

No discussion about the safety of past students who stayed in the College Inn has arisen, though anyone who was housed there and disturbed asbestos materials could be candidates for developing diseases like mesothelioma later in life.

The College Inn was built in 1964 during a time in which asbestos use was commonplace. It was acquired by the university’s Housing and Dining Services in 1976 and was originally used as a conference center. When the school saw a huge rise in enrollment in the early years of the new millennium, they converted it to a hotel-style building with single rooms that could be used to house students.

However, last year, the university acquired space for another 1,000 students and no longer need to use the asbestos-filled structure. In addition, it would cost about $750,000 for asbestos abatement, making demolition a more viable option, say school officials.