Last week I posted news that the federal Bureau of Land Management, under the direction of the Environmental Protection Agency, closed a 48-acre recreational area in California known as Clear Creek due to concerns about high levels of asbestos in the area. The land is a popular area for off-road hiking, biking and ATV adventures, with about 35,000 visitors a year. But now it seems that asbestos is a growing concern throughout a wide swath of California, where naturally occuring asbestos is prevalent. The Los Angeles Times reported May 2 about a community in El Dorado Hills, Calif., that is being investigated by the EPA for high asbestos levels.

Inspectors donned air filters and protective gear while running, biking and playing baseball and other sports in areas of the town to monitor asbestos levels. The paper reported that initial EPA assessments were worst along a creek-side trail in El Dorado Hills Community Park, where asbestos levels were 22-43 times higher than ambient air levels when stirred up by the common recreational activities tested.

It shouldn’t come as a complete surprise to the town. Already, the newspaper reported, asbestos concerns were responsible for a $2.5-million cleanup at Oak Ridge High School, including replacing the running track with a new all-weather surface.

Still, there is active ground clearing and new home construction throughout the town, with an affluent population and fine homes priced in the $700,000 range.

While some residents expressed concern, I was struck by the comments of residents who seemed to want to ignore the threat, or who refused to believe there would be a problem as a result of the asbestos. The Times quoted residents who “shrugged off” the news, saying “the whole thing seems like overkill.” Others objected to “the government” “overreacting,” saying “there’s risk in life whatever you do.”

One resident, who is worried about the effects on her children, recalling how her daughter brushed up clouds of asbestos-laden dust after a cheerleading routine, said, “Most people around here seem more worred about home values than health.”

The same types of risk dismissals are found in the Clear Creek story, where outdoor enthusiasts are vowing to fight the recreational area’s closing, telling the government to stop meddling and let them take the risk.

I just don’t understand this attitude. Asbestos is proven to be a danger, causing asbestosis, mesothelioma and other lung and stomach cancers. If people were told they were building their homes on radioactive land, or bike riding through Chernobyl, they would be concerned. Why is this deadly threat so much less apparent to them? Most seem to have the attitude that they will “worry about it later.”

What about the children? With the often long latency period for asbestos damage, youngsters exposed to asbestos now are at risk of developing problems in the prime of life. Are parents really willing to risk the lives of their children in order to not be “inconvenienced” or to “make their own decisions” independent of government recommendations?

If the EPA were to turn away from this danger, to issue a warning but not aggressively pursue closures and clean-up, what would the public say years from now, when people are affected with asbestosis and mesothelioma? “Where was our warning?” “Where was the government, to tell us there was danger?”

You can’t have it both ways.

In March, I posted that for the first time the Department of Defense (DoD) had appropriated funding for mesothelioma research as a priority within the department’s Medical Research Program, thanks in most part to the lobbying efforts of the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation (MARF, Meso Foundation). Today, TheHill.com reports that MARF, with the backing of more than a dozen senators, is pushing for continuing and increasing funds for mesothelioma research in the 2009 defense appropriations bill.

In the 2008 defense appropriations bill, Congress designated $50 million for the mesothelioma research as part of the Pentagon’s peer-reviewed program.

TheHill.com points out that supporters of the initiative for continued funding in the 2009 bill argue that “at least one third of the people suffering from mesothelioma … have either been in the Navy or worked in Navy shipyards across the country” where they were exposed to asbestos. Much of the exposure in the Navy cases, the report states, happened between World War II and the Vietnam War, when asbestos was used in shipyards and ships. For that reason, supporters push for federal funding for research.

TheHill.com writer Roxana Tiron reports that last month several senators sent a letter to the chairman and ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Defense panel in support of the continued funding. The letter stated, in part, “Funding through the Department of Defense appropriations bill is an important demonstration of our nation’s commitment to addressing the tragedy of mesothelioma and its disproportionate impact on those who serve our country.”

Among the bill’s supporters are Sens. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.), who have been leading the charge to ban asbestos and secure more funding for mesothelioma research. The Ban Asbestos bill, introduced by Murray and passed in the Senate last October, includes $10 million per year in funding for cancer research. The companion bill in the House has not yet been passed.

Also among the supporters for the 2009 appropriations funding for meso are Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and John Ensign (R-Nev.).

The Meso Foundation funds approximately $1 million a year for research worldwide. The organization will hold its annual three-day symposium in Washington, D.C., starting on June 26, expecting more than 100 grassroots supporters to meet with their congressional representatives. For more information about this event, visit MARF online.

Golf Digest magazine announced John Atkinson, a stage IV lung cancer survivor, has been selected to play as part of a celebrity foursome at Torrey Pines, the same course played by the pros at this year’s U.S. Open. Atkinson will play with NBC Today Show host Matt Lauer, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, and recording artist Justin Timberlake. The event will be broadcast on NBC Sports on Sunday, June 15, from 2-3 p.m. (ET), in the hour leading into NBC’s broadcast of the final round.

Atkinson was selected from more than 56,000 entries, voted on by the magazine’s readers. Never a smoker, he was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer a little more than a year ago at age 38. He hopes to use the golf event as an opportunity to raise awareness for lung cancer funding and research.

In a press release from the Lung Cancer Alliance, which urged its members and supporters to vote for Atkinson, he is quoted as saying, “The game of golf to me is living. I am going out there to enjoy the golf course, to play a great round and to give hope to those who are faced with life threatening illnesses. If I can beat America’s deadliest cancer, then I can definitely break 100 [at Torrey Pines]. It’s going to be a great day, an emotional day, and I can’t wait.”

Lung cancer is the nation’s leading cancer killer, taking more lives than breast, prostate and colon cancers combined.

To enter the contest, Atkinson submitted a 100-word essay describing why he could break 100 at Torrey Pines. Once being chosen as a finalist, he received more than 48,000 of the 117,000 votes cast in the first U.S. Open Contest, conducted by Golf Digest, the United States Golf Association, and NBC Sports. You can watch a video interview with Atkinson and read other features about the foursome at Golf Digest online.

Amy Peterson of the Lung Cancer Alliance posted to the LCA message board / support group on Inspire.com yesterday to let cancer survivors know about a new program that aims to provide hope and cheer during a difficult time. The LCA is partnering with Compassionate Communications, a company dedicated to connecting people in need of support and encouragement with people who want to reach out to them.

Compassionate Communications will operate a web site, which will be launched sometime this month, that will feature photos and information about people struggling with cancer, including mesothelioma, and other life-threatening illnesses. Visitors to the site can view profiles, and if they choose to register (for a fee of $25), they will receive five Hallmark greeting cards with pre-paid postage, to send to patients to encourage them, and other support materials. Twenty-five percent of the registration fee will benefit patient-serving organizations.

There is no charge for a patient to register his or her profile. The program operates in cooperation with Hallmark Business Expressions (a subsidiary of Hallmark Cards, Inc.).

Patients may download an “opt-in” registration form and waiver directly from the web site, or call 888-337-6416. The waiver must be completed and returned by mail or fax to Compassionate Communications, which will then provide participants with an account so they can set up their personal profile on the site. There is a place on the waiver form for patients to designate the patient-assistance organization they would like card-sender registration fees to benefit.

You may also get more information or ask questions by emailing Amy at the Lung Cancer Alliance at apearson@lungcanceralliance.org.

Asbestos concerns have forced the relocation of nearly 150 elementary school-age children from North Kossuth Community School in Bancroft, Iowa. An Associated Press report released on MSNBC today says asbestos levels in one classroom were 10 times greater than what is considered safe, and 1,000 times greater in a second-floor hallway at the school. Asbestos has been linked to mesothelioma cancer and other diseases including asbestosis, a severe scarring of the lungs.

The school was closed Monday after testing revealed the high asbestos levels present in the facility. Students will be relocated to a facility in the nearby community of Swea City, with plans to complete this resume classes Thursday. Students have three weeks remaining in the school year.

According to a story on MidIowaNews.com, the district has been concerned about the school since at least May 4, 2007, when Paul Baer of The Institute for Environmental Assessment sent a memo stating that accoustical ceiling spray on the ceiling of the second floor hallway and classrooms contained asbestos. The news story goes on to say that the memo stated that due to roof leaks beginning in 2002, asbestos was beginning to separate from the plaster and would release asbestos fibers into the air if it fell.

On March 18, 2008, the Fairmont Sentinel, a daily paper that serves southern Minnesota and northern Iowa, reported that concerns were raised at the March 17 school board meeting. North Kossuth Superintendent Mike Landstrum told the Sentinel that an IEA inspector “told me there were some major concerns with health issues.”

Following the meeting, two public hearings were set to address the issue, one on April 7 at Swea City, and one April 14 in Bancroft.

The Sentinel reported that at the Swea City meeting April 7, in a letter to the district, George Rosburg of the IEA stated the water damage, visible leaks and sagging asbestos ceiling spray were “… a serious health & safety concern, and recommends North Kossuth Community Schools consider the asbestos removal and roof repair as a very high priority.”

Until this decision to relocate students, North Kossuth Elementary has been located in space rented from St. John’s Catholic School, a private school located on the same campus. North Kossuth has rented the property since 2002. Because the district leases the building, St. John’s is responsible for maintenance, which would include asbestos removal and other repairs.

North Kossuth’s lease agreement with St. John’s does not expire until 2012.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requires all public school districts and private schools, known as local education agencies or LEAs, to inspect all school buildings for both friable and nonfriable asbestos; to develop plans to manage asbestos in schools; and to carry out the plans in a timely fashion.

Monday, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty signed the bill that will provide $4.9 million for a mesothelioma research study. The bill unanimously passed the Senate, and passed by a vote of 121-1 in the House.
The 5-year study, which will be conducted under the direction of the University of Minnesota, will analyze death records and conduct screenings of current and former Iron Range mine workers and their families. The study will determine if there is a link between mesothelioma and the taconite fibers produced by the mine. To date, 58 Iron Range workers have died of mesothelioma.

The study also will include environmental research.

Funding for the program will come from a special insurance fund overseen by the Department of Commerce.

Today the Minnesota House of Representatives passed the bill that will provide $4.9 million for a mesothelioma research study, by a vote of 121-1. The bill unanimously passed the Senate on Monday. It now goes to Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who is expected to sign it.

The study, which will be conducted under the direction of the University of Minnesota, will analyze death records and conduct screenings of current and former Iron Range mine workers and their families. To date, 58 Iron Range workers have died of mesothelioma. The study also will include environmental research, and is expected to last 5 years.

Funding for the program will come from a special insurance fund overseen by the Department of Commerce.

A new study is predicting 10 percent of Australian carpenters born before 1950 will die of mesothelioma.

The Australian study, conducted by cancer research specialist Professor Julian Peto, was based on research into the lifetime occupations of 600 mesothelioma patients. Its findings were reported by the web site news.theage.com.au yesterday.

Peto predicts 30,000 Australians will die from mesothelioma between 2000 and 2050. He says the cause is exposure to both crocidolite asbestos (blue asbestos) and amosite (brown asbestos), which was used in building products in Australia and Britain until the 1980s.

According to the story on theage.com.au, Peto’s research reveals that Australia and the UK currently have the highest rates of mesothelioma in the world, with an estimated 600 cases per year in Australia and 2,000 in Britain, with numbers still rising.

Because I write this blog in the United States, I don’t talk as much about the looming global disaster asbestos poses. But it’s frightening, and it’s sickening, to see the effects of asbestos exposure just surfacing in communities around the world. I am afraid the coming suffering is unimaginable.

The Minnesota Senate voted unanimously Monday to pass a bill that would provide $4.9 million for mesothelioma research. More than 58 Iron Range miners have died from mesothelioma or other asbestos-related diseases. The money will fund a 5-year research study of the taconite miners and their families, to be directed by the University of Minnesota.

The bill now goes to the House, where a vote is expected Wednesday. If the bill passes the House, it will go to Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who is expected to approve it.

Originally, there was some dispute about the bill due to its funding source, but an amendment in the Senate resolved that issue. The money will come from a Department of Commerce fund that is reported to be operating with a surplus.

A compromise has been reached in the Minnesota legislature over funding for a mesothelioma research study. MyMeso has been following the progress of a bill in the Minnesota House that would provide $4.9 million to fund a study of mesothelioma and asbestos disease in the state’s Iron Range miners. More than 58 taconite miners have died from mesothelioma or other asbestos disease.

There was some controversy over the source of the funding when the bill was introduced in the House. Gov. Tim Pawlenty objected to the proposed funding source, a special state worker’s compensation fund, fearing it would raise premium costs for businesses that use the fund. The governor had threatened to veto the bill unless an alternate funding source was established.

An amendment proposed by the Minnesota Senate yesterday afternoon would fund the bill from a Department of Commerce fund, which is an “assigned risk” worker’s compensation fund.

The money will fund a five-year research project headed up by the University of Minnesota, which will review the health of miners and spouses, study the health records and occupations of miners who died and analyze the air quality in and around the mining communities.

The Senate has indicated support of the revised bill, with a final vote expected early next week. It will then move back to the House, where it also is expected to be met favorably.

According to TwinCities.com, a Pawlenty spokesman said the governor supports the amended bill and “believes it’s very important that this study moves forward.”