The first stage of asbestos cleanup in Libby and nearby Troy, Montana focused on removing asbestos contamination from residential property. The EPA has proposed a number of projects for continuing the cleanup of private homes, but also of the vermiculite mine that has been the source of the asbestos contamination. The EPA still has to determine how far asbestos contamination extends from the mine. EPA officials have met with residents to solicit feedback about the plans. Residents clearly voiced their opinion that the EPA needs to find more money to invest in making Libby safe from asbestos. Delays in completing the cleanup have led residents to fear that asbestos exposure and asbestos-related deaths will continue that much further into the future. The EPA reported that it had increased the budget for cleanup and research in Libby over the past two years, and overextending on the quantity of work undertaken would adversely affect the quality of the work. The EPA says it expects to explain within about two years how asbestos exposure in Libby triggers diseases like mesothelioma, which has already killed hundreds in Libby. Montana Senator Max Baucus has suggested that the EPA has not declared a public health emergency in Libby because the White House has exerted political pressure to prevent it. See related story.
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