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Asbestos in North Carolina

Linda Molinari
Author: Linda Molinari
Jennifer Lucarelli
Last Updated: 11/12/2025

Companies in North Carolina used asbestos in many workplaces, like chemical factories, mines and power plants. They also sold products to the military, putting veterans who served in North Carolina at risk of exposure. Asbestos exposure can lead to mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases.

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Asbestos in North Carolina

Asbestos was often used in North Carolina’s manufacturing plants, military bases, steel mills and shipyards. Workers in the construction and fire protection industries were also regularly exposed to asbestos. As a result, many people who have lived or worked in North Carolina may have been exposed to asbestos.

With more than two dozen asbestos mines, North Carolina was a major producer of this dangerous mineral. Miners and other workers who worked around asbestos faced exposure risks. The construction industry also used asbestos products, putting residents at risk of at-home asbestos exposure.

Any level of asbestos exposure can pose major health risks, including mesothelioma, lung cancer and other serious illnesses.

North Carolina Asbestos Statistics

North Carolina was one of the top four asbestos producers in the United States from 1900 to 2003. The state has 49 known asbestos sites, including:

  • 27 former asbestos mines
  • 10 former asbestos prospects that did not turn into mines
  • 12 sites of natural asbestos occurrence that were never mined

Key facts and statistics about asbestos and mesothelioma in North Carolina from 1999 to 2020 include:

  • North Carolina ranked 14th for the most mesothelioma cases in the United States at 1,623.
  • North Carolina ranked 15th for the most mesothelioma deaths in the United States at 1,266.
  • Out of 1,266 total deaths, Wake County has the highest mesothelioma mortality in the state at 86.

Patients looking for treatment in North Carolina should seek care from experienced mesothelioma doctors and care teams. Three well-known mesothelioma cancer centers in North Carolina are:

Anyone in North Carolina with mesothelioma may qualify to seek compensation. Mesothelioma lawyers in North Carolina can help asbestos-exposure victims determine their legal options and file lawsuits and claims on their behalf.

Occupational Asbestos Use in North Carolina

Throughout the 20th century, North Carolina workers often faced asbestos hazards on the job. Occupational asbestos exposure occurred in manufacturing plants, military bases, asbestos and talc mines, shipyards, steel mills, vermiculite plants and other jobsites.

Anyone in North Carolina who worked in these industries may have been exposed to asbestos, putting them at risk for mesothelioma, lung cancer and other diseases.

Occupations Exposed to Asbestos in North Carolina

North Carolina residents may also have experienced non-occupational exposure from asbestos companies’ activities. Living near a factory or mine with known asbestos contamination may increase a person’s risk of mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases. Families of workers who were exposed to this carcinogen may be at risk of secondary asbestos exposure.

Homeowners in North Carolina with houses built before the 1980s may be at risk of exposure from asbestos-containing materials. Asbestos was used in more than 3,000 different kinds of building materials, including attic insulation, ceiling and floor tiles, drywall joint compound and roofing shingles.

Steel Mills

Steel mill workers in North Carolina may have been exposed to asbestos. For example, Nucor Corporation and J & H Power Group Inc. both had steel mills that were known asbestos jobsites.

Workers may have been exposed to asbestos during production and from materials used to construct the mill facilities themselves. Repair and wear and tear on these materials can cause asbestos fibers to become airborne.

Asbestos-containing materials were often found in boilers, gaskets, ladles, linings, ovens and steam pipes. Many steel workers wore special uniforms to protect them from burns. These fireproof uniforms often contained asbestos in their linings.

Shipbuilding

Shipbuilding is one of the most dangerous asbestos occupations. For example, workers who built and repaired boats or ships have experienced mortality from asbestosis 15 times greater than the average across all industries.

Asbestos was commonly found in the materials used to build, maintain and repair ships. North Carolina shipyards with documented asbestos exposures include Barbour Boat Works, Elizabeth City Shipyard and North Carolina Shipbuilding Company.

Manufacturing

For many cities throughout North Carolina, manufacturers were a pillar of the local economy. At their production plants, asbestos was present in the buildings themselves, the machinery they used and the products they made.

Asbestos was common across different types of manufacturing throughout most of the 20th century. Companies like Gaylord Container Corporation and Southern Asbestos Company Mills had known exposures at their manufacturing facilities.

Construction

From the 1940s to 1980s, asbestos building materials were commonly used in commercial and residential construction in North Carolina. For example, asbestos pipes were used for storm, waste and wastewater drainage, while asbestos siding was used in exterior walls, roofing and trim.

The Carolina Asbestos Company was an asbestos manufacturer that made construction materials. Their plant in Davidson, North Carolina, made asbestos fabric, shingles and tiles from the 1930s to the 1960s.

Military

The military has a large footprint in North Carolina. For example, Fort Bragg in Fayetteville is one of the largest United States Army bases. The base was built in 1918 and has expanded over the years. Soldiers faced a number of exposure risks. Many barracks and buildings across Fort Bragg have been found to contain asbestos.

In 2008, the Army demolished buildings with asbestos floor tiles at Fort Bragg. In 2022, over a dozen Fort Bragg barracks on Smoke Bomb Hill had to be demolished. These old barracks contained asbestos and mold. Roughly 1,200 soldiers were displaced by the demolition.

Many buildings on Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville were also made with asbestos-containing materials. These materials included ceiling sealants, fuse boxes, insulation, plaster walls, vinyl floor tiles and more. Marine veterans who were stationed at Camp Lejeune may have been exposed to asbestos.

Questions About Mesothelioma and Asbestos Exposure in North Carolina? Ask experienced mesothelioma advocate Jennifer Lucarelli Ask a Question

Asbestos Shipyards and Superfund Sites in North Carolina

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has identified Superfund sites in North Carolina. Some shipyards in North Carolina have known asbestos contamination.

North Carolina Shipbuilding Company

During World War II, the United States government created the Emergency Shipbuilding Program to help quickly get materials to its allies. The North Carolina Shipbuilding Company shipyard in Wilmington was built for this program.

Throughout the war, the shipyard built over 200 ships, including 54 vessels for the U.S. Navy. At its peak, the company employed more than 20,000 professional shipbuilders. It also used untrained citizens who wanted to contribute. Asbestos materials were heavily used in Navy vessels and other ships, putting shipyard workers and veterans at high risk of exposure.

In a 2001 lawsuit, the plaintiff listed known asbestos exposure while working as a welder at the North Carolina Shipbuilding Company in the 1940s. He was later diagnosed with asbestos-related lung disease, including pleural effusion.

Blue Ridge Plating Company

The Blue Ridge Plating Company site is located in Arden, North Carolina. It is a former metal plating plant surrounded by commercial, industrial and residential buildings. This area became a Superfund site in 2005 because the metal plating waste contaminated both groundwater and soil.

During ongoing cleanup efforts, the EPA discovered and removed asbestos, chemicals and contaminated materials and soil from the building. The building was demolished immediately after. The demolition project was completed in July 2016. The EPA continues to monitor groundwater at the Blue Ridge Plating Company site.

LCP-Holtrachem

LCP-Holtrachem is located along the Cape Fear River in Riegelwood, North Carolina. The manufacturing plant is currently owned by Honeywell. Former processes at the plant contaminated surrounding areas. It has been listed as a Superfund site since 2022.

Together with the Potentially Responsible Parties (PRPs), Honeywell and International Paper, the EPA and North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) are cleaning up the site. When cleanup first began, they removed all hazardous waste, including asbestos, mercury and other debris.

Horton Iron and Metal

Horton Iron and Metal stretches across more than 42 acres in Wilmington, North Carolina, along the Northeast Cape Fear River. This site was home to a fertilizer manufacturer from 1911 to 1954. Through the 1970s, the property was used for shipbreaking during World War II.

The site has been on the Superfund list since 2011 for groundwater, sediment and soil contamination. The NCDEQ and PRPs are working together to clean up the Horton Iron and Metal property. In 2013, a study of the site returned higher than acceptable levels of asbestos, metals, pesticides and other harmful toxins in the soil.

Asbestos Exposure in North Carolina Cities

The following is a list of North Carolina cities with known workplace asbestos use. Not all sites with asbestos risks are known. Click on the city below to see which companies have known asbestos exposure in North Carolina and find resources in the area.

Asbestos Risks at Other North Carolina Jobsites

Beyond North Carolina’s major cities, asbestos exposure may have occurred at other jobsites. People who were employed at one of these work sites may be at greater risk of pleural mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases. Pick a location below to see a full list of workplaces with known asbestos exposure.

North Carolina Asbestos Work Sites
Sources

  1. archINFORM. Southern Asbestos Company Mills.

  2. Center for Public Environmental Oversight. City to withdraw shipyard grant requests.

  3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC WONDER: About Underlying Cause of Death, 1999-2020.

  4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC WONDER: United States and Puerto Rico Cancer Statistics, 1999-2021 Incidence Request.

  5. Hedley-Whyte J, Milamed DR. Asbestos and ship-building: fatal consequences. Ulster Med J. 2008 Sep;77(3):191–200.

  6. Krstev S, Stewart P, Rusiecki J, Blair A. Mortality among shipyard Coast Guard workers: a retrospective cohort study. Occup Environ Med. 2007 Oct;64(10):651–8.

  7. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Division of Respiratory Disease Studies. Work-Related Lung Disease Surveillance Report 2007.

  8. North Carolina Department of Conservation and Development. The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina.

  9. North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. Health Hazards Control Unit: Asbestos Hazard Management.

  10. North Carolina Industrial Commission. Hatcher v. Daniel International Corp.

  11. Sabre Demolition. Our Projects: Gaylord Container Corporation.

  12. S&ME. Barbour Boat Works Environmental Remediation.

  13. United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Smith v. Schlage Lock Co.

  14. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Superfund Site: BLUE RIDGE PLATING COMPANY, ARDEN, NC.

  15. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Superfund Site: HOLTRACHEM/HONEYWELL INC., RIEGELWOOD, NC.

  16. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Superfund Site: HORTON IRON AND METAL, WILMINGTON, NC.

  17. United States Geological Survey. Reported Historic Asbestos Mines, Historic Asbestos Prospects, and Natural Asbestos Occurrences in the Eastern United States.

  18. United States Geological Survey. TALC RESOURCES OF THE CONTERMINOUS UNITED STATES.

  19. United States Geological Survey. Worldwide Asbestos Supply and Consumption Trends from 1900 through 2003.

  20. WLOS News 13. Mesothelioma, prostate cancers most common among cases reported by NC firefighters.

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Linda Molinari, Editor in Chief at Mesothelioma.com
Written by Linda Molinari Editor in Chief
Jennifer Lucarelli
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