Libby Asbestos
Set in the northwest corner of Montana, 35 miles east of Idaho and 65 miles south of Canada, is the small town of Libby. The town lies in a picturesque valley carved by the Kootenai River and framed by the Cabinet Mountains to the south. Libby has population of less than 3,000, and 12,000 people live within a ten-mile radius. Libby is the Lincoln County seat. The community's assets include clean water, beautiful scenery, and recreational opportunities such as fishing, hiking, hunting, boating and skiing.
 EPA has been working in Libby since 1999 when an Emergency Response Team was sent to investigate local concern and news articles about asbestos-contaminated vermiculite. Since that time, EPA has been working closely with the community to clean up contamination and reduce risks to human health.
Are You New to Libby?
Contact the EPA Information Center (406-293-6194) for the latest information on the work being done by the Environmental Protection Agency in Libby. The staff will answer your questions or direct you to the appropriate resource. You can find out if your property has been screened for asbestos and if any cleanup work was done. Also, you can see samples of vermiculite in various forms and you can pick up a number of informative flyers and brochures.
Since November, 1999, EPA has cleaned up the major source areas of contamination around town. EPA is now cleaning up smaller sources found in a variety of places such as around homes and businesses. EPA conducts stringent clearance sampling after cleanup and has begun some targeted sampling to measure the effectiveness of cleanup several months later. EPA is also working on long-term plans to ensure that the cleanup remains protective and human health risks continue to be reduced over time. EPA's ongoing cleanup efforts continue to make Libby a safer place to live, work, and visit.
Until the cleanup is finished, disturbance of vermiculite is the most likely source of exposures to asbestos. So, learn what it looks like and where it is likely to be found - then leave it alone!
Libby Site Background
In response to local concern and news articles about asbestos-contaminated vermiculite, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sent an Emergency Response Team to Libby, Montana in late November 1999. The Team immediately began collecting information.
EPA's first priority was to assess the current risk to public health from asbestos-contaminated vermiculite in Libby. Next, the Agency began taking necessary actions to reduce this risk.
In December 1999 EPA began collecting samples - nearly 700 - from air, soil, dust and insulation at homes and businesses. Indoor air sample results were released in January - first to property owners and then to the media and general public. EPA also moved immediately to locate areas in and near Libby that were likely to have high levels of contamination such as two former vermiculite processing facilities.
EPA also looked at general asbestos exposures in the community and at health effects seen in people who had little or no association with the vermiculite mine in Libby. EPA worked closely with local, state and federal agencies to understand how people might come into contact with asbestos-contaminated vermiculite and what can be done to prevent future exposures - in Libby and elsewhere.
Libby was added to EPA's National Priorities List in October 2002.
EPA established a program to inspect all properties in Libby. Approximately 3500 properties were inspected in 2002 and 2003. Over 12,000 soil samples were collected and analyzed and the results are being sent to property owners.
As of 2006, the former vermiculite processing plants and other public areas have been cleaned up. Cleanups have also been completed at a total of 794 residential and commercial properties. EPA expects to complete at least 170 cleanups is 2005.
Based on current information, EPA estimates that 1200-1400 residential and business properties will need some type of cleanup. The total number depends upon the final cleanup standards set by EPA. EPA intends to propose these standards later this year.
EPA works closely with local, state and federal agencies, including:
- the City of Libby
- Lincoln County Commissioners and the Department of Environmental Health
- the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ)
- the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS)
- and the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR)
Libby History
Gold miners discovered vermiculite in Libby in 1881; in the 1920s the Zonolite Company formed and began mining the vermiculite. In 1963, W.R. Grace bought the Zonolite mining operations. The mine closed in 1990.
While in operation, the Libby mine may have produced 80% of the world's supply of vermiculite. Vermiculite has been used in building insulation and as a soil conditioner. Unfortunately, the vermiculite from the Libby mine was contaminated with a toxic form of naturally-occurring asbestos called tremolite-actinolite asbestiform mineral fibers.
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