Missouri Asbestos Exposure

Asbestos sites in Missouri include two power generation plants, two chemical companies, a motor vehicle assembly plant and a university, where asbestos was discovered during renovation.

Asbestos (actually a generic term for several different minerals that are made of rock, yet are soft, flexible and fibrous) was used in virtually every industry as well as building construction – anywhere there was danger of fire, electrical shock or exposure to corrosive and caustic chemicals.

Although asbestos has saved hundreds of thousands of lives and billions of dollars in property, it can be devastating to the human respiratory system. Asbestos diseases include:

• fibrosis (an increase of fibrous tissue in the lungs)
• pleural plaques and thickening
• lung cancer
• mesothelioma (cancer of the visceral lining)

Missouri Cities where Asbestos Exposure Occurred

Provided below is a list of cities in the state of Missouri where asbestos jobsites are known to have been located. If you worked at any of these companies and/or jobsites in Missouri there is a possibility that you may have been exposed to harmful asbestos which is known to cause mesothelioma. Click on any link to view a complete list of jobsites in that city.

Asbestos Varieties

95% of all asbestos products were made from the relatively soft variety known as chrysotile, or “white” asbestos. This was regarded as an ideal flame retardant and was used in flooring, ceiling textures, insulation and pipe-wrapping among other applications.

Crocidolite, or “blue” asbestos is resistant to caustic chemical substances as well as electrical current. It is classified as amphibole; such fibers are hard and spear-like, causing cellular mutations much faster than chrysotile. Another type of amphibole asbestos is amosite, which is also highly resistant to corrosive chemicals and heat; having considerable tensile strength, amosite was used extensively in the manufacture of asbestos cement sheets and pipes, water casings and electrical insulation.

Asbestos Industries

The Mack Truck assembly plant in Joplin is one jobsite where workers have run an elevated risk of asbestos disease, due to the asbestos-containing materials used in gasket materials and brake linings. The state's power generation plants are also sources of asbestos; between 2003 and 2007, doctors in Puerto Rico studied the chest x-rays of a large number of power plant workers and found that 13% of the men had signs of asbestos disease.

W.R. Grace & company operated a zonolite plant in St. Louis, processing almost 105,000 tons of vermiculite ore from its mining operations in Libby, Montana over its years of operation. While vermiculite itself is relatively harmless, it was often contaminated with tremolite, another type of amphibole asbestos. During processing, these fibers were released into the air, exposing not only workers at the plant itself, but those living and working in the vicinity as well.

Building Renovations

A few years back, the owner of a major hotel chain was found guilty of violations in connection to the renovation of one of its Kansas City buildings. The owner had hired untrained employees at minimum wage to do the work rather than trained professionals. He was assessed fines totaling $300,000.

Asbestos Sources

There are two naturally-occurring deposits of amphibole asbestos in the state's Ozark Mountain region; one is located southwest of Poplar Bluff, and other near Advance. There was also a chrysotile mine in the latter area at one time.

Statistics

Between 1980 and 2000, 624 Missourians died from asbestos disease. 62% of these were due to mesothelioma. Asbestosis is far more common, but is not immediately fatal. Mesothelioma patients on the other hand survive no more than 18 months following such a diagnosis. Most of the fatalities occurred in urban areas; St. Louis accounted for about one-quarter of the total.

Other Missouri Jobsites Where Asbestos Exposure Occurred

If someone you know has ever worked at one of the Jobsites listed below, they may have been exposed to high levels of asbestos. Asbestos exposure at any one of these Jobsites could put them at risk for developing one of the following asbestos related diseases: malignant mesothelioma (a terminal cancer), asbestos related lung cancer, asbestosis or pleural mesothelioma.

Sources

Cabrera-Santiago, Manuel et al. "Prevalence of Asbestos-Related Disease Among Electrical Power Generation Workers in Puerto Rico." Presentation at American Public Health Association Annual Meeting, 2007.

Dillon, Karen. “Management Company Fined $300,000 for Illegally Removing Asbestos.” Kansas City Star, 26 June 2007.

Evans, David and Greg Johnstone. “Asbestos Use Companies and Locations in Missouri.” All About Malignant Mesothelioma (September 2005.)

EWG Action Fund. “W. R. Grace Hotspots in Missouri.” Environmental Working Group, 1 June 2005.
http://www.ewg.org/files/MO_factsheet.pdf (accessed 23 August 2010).

Geological Research, Analyses and Services Programs. “Naturally Occurring Asbestos Locations in the Contiguous U.S. and Alaska.” Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, 25 May 2007.
http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/noa/usamap.pdf (accessed 23 August 2010).