For 70 years, 80 percent of theworld’s vermiculite—a mineral used in building materials, soil, insulation, andfireproofing—was mined and shipped across the globe from Libby, Montana.
In thefall of 1999, news of Libby's elevated deaths and an asbestos-related diseaserate 60 times greater than the general United States population prompted theU.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to launch an immediate study andcleanup and declare the 180-square-mile area a Superfund site. After someinvestigation, Libby amphibole (LA) asbestos, a deadly trace contaminant of thevermiculite, was identified. EPA has located and cleaned up two of theprocessing sites in Salt LakeCity.

For more information on Asbestos andthe Libby Montana Clean up, click on the sites listed below. 

EPA/Region 8's Libby WebPage: http://epa.gov/region8/superfund/libby/index.html

PA/HQ's Asbestos and Vermiculiteweb page: 
http://www.epa.gov/asbestos/

EPA/ATSDR Vermiculite in AtticInsulation brochure:
http://www.epa.gov/asbestos/pubs/insulationbrochure2.pdf

Agency for Toxic Substances andDisease Registry (ATSDR)Asbestos :
http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/asbestos/

ATSDR Asbestos fact sheet:
http://www.epa.gov/asbestos/pubs/atsdr.pdf

ATSDR Info on Vermiculite inHousehold Products:
http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/NEWS/vermiculite051603.html

National Institute for OccupationalSafety and Health (NIOSH):
http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/homepage.html

Info For Doctors
http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/asbestos/site-kit/index.html

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Vermiculite in Yards - SLC, UT

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