Posted on: Monday, June 28, 2004
Mapunapuna site high on list for asbestos cleanup
By Timothy Hurley
Advertiser Staff Writer
The federal government has listed a former Mapunapuna manufacturing plant on a priority list of sites studied for health concerns in connection to shipments of asbestos-contaminated vermiculite ore from a Montana mine.
Former employees of Vermiculite of Hawai'i Inc. and their immediate family members are being advised to seek advice from doctors with expertise in asbestos-related diseases.
Vermiculite ore is a naturally occurring mineral used in consumer products such as attic insulation, lawn and garden products, and fireproofing material.
Officials say Vermiculite of Hawai'i processed several hundred tons of asbestos-tainted vermiculite between 1971 and 1981 and is one of about 240 sites across the country that received ore shipments from a Libby, Mont., mine linked to 200 deaths and 750 illnesses.
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry put the Hawai'i site on its priority first-phase list of 28 sites because the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency supervised a cleanup of asbestos-contaminated material there two and a half years ago.
The ATSDR, a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services agency, is evaluating the potential health affects associated with exposure to asbestos at the site and the nearby community. The agency is expected to complete an evaluation by the end of the year.
Most vermiculite ore and products do not pose a health hazard, but that was not the case for the vermiculite mined and processed in Libby from the early 1920s through 1990.
While the mine is closed now, studies show that people who worked in Libby or its vermiculite-processing facilities — and those who lived near these sites — were exposed to hazardous levels of asbestos while the facilities were in operation. Lung cancer and fatal asbestos poisoning rates in Libby are 40 to 60 times higher than would be expected, according to the studies.
Little is known about the defunct Vermiculite of Hawai'i plant, except that it processed vermiculite for building products. Invoice records show that the site received Libby vermiculite from 1971 to 1981, the ATSDR said.
Located at 842A Mapunapuna St., the half-acre, rectangular lot owned by the Damon Estate was being used for storage by Hawai'i Stage and Lighting Inc. when the EPA discovered vermiculite containing amphibole asbestos in and around the buildings there. Amphibole asbestos is considered by many to be the most toxic.
According to EPA records, a cleanup was conducted in December of 2001. The work included excavation of the top 12 inches of soil from a 4-foot-by-20-foot strip. The area was filled with clean earth material and covered with 4 inches of asphalt.
Barbara Anderson, ATSDR environmental health scientist, said former Vermiculite of Hawai'i employees and immediate family members should consult a physician with expertise in asbestos-related health problems. Such problems can appear 15 to 20 years after exposure, she said.
They should also stop smoking. Anderson said smoking and respiratory ailments can exacerbate the lung conditions caused by asbestos.
But plant workers and their families may not be the only ones at risk. Evidence suggests that those living around the plants also may have been exposed. In one documented case, an individual who as a child played in a stockpile of Libby vermiculite in Minneapolis, Minn., died from an asbestos-related disease at the age of 43.
Anderson said her agency is still evaluating the exposure levels of the Mapunapuna site and whether those who lived near the plant were affected.
The site has more people living within a half-mile — 13,051 — than any other first-phase site, according to the Environmental Working Group Action Fund, a nonprofit watchdog organization that has been tracking the Libby vermiculite problem.
Asbestos kills an estimated 10,000 people a year in the U.S., the Environmental Working Group found in a recent examination of federal health statistics.
The same report indicated that at least 137 people have been killed by asbestos-related illnesses since 1979 in Hawai'i, although the number probably represents less than 20 percent of total asbestos mortality during that time because of reporting deficiencies.
"Most people don't even know that asbestos was never banned in the U.S. and that it's still in use in homes around the country. Asbestos-related deaths are also on the rise," said Lauren Sucher, Environmental Working Group spokeswoman.
The EPA has cautioned consumers who suspect they have asbestos-contaminated vermiculite insulation in their homes not to disturb it. If disturbed, fibers can be inhaled and trapped in the lungs, where they may cause diseases developing many years after exposure. Left alone, the particles won't become airborne.
Reach Timothy Hurley at thurley@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 244-4880.
