Syracuse Factory in Asbestos Limelight

Julu 28, 2006 - The Syracuse Post-Standard has published the findings of a health study conducted to determine the health hazards presented by a former insulation factory in nearby Weedsport.  The study, which dealt with the W R Grace Zonolite Co. plant in that town, has determined that some factory workers developed asbestos-related diseases caused by exposure on-the-job.  The study has not yet determined whether the community living around the plant has been affected.

The conclusions are part of a 92-page final report by the state Health Department, which ordered a health assessment related to the former Weedsport factory in 2001, reports the Post-Standard.  The department is now completing a wider study looking for any asbestos-related diseases or lung cancer among community members.

"We have not yet completed our health statistics review, which is looking for any unusual disease patterns," said Claire Pospisil, a spokeswoman for the state Health Department in Albany. "We expect to release the results of this review by the end of this year."

The factory was one of 28 nationwide that received vermiculite from the W R Grace Mine in Libby, Montana.  Libby has one of the highest rates of mesothelioma – asbestos-related cancer – in the nation, and seven Grace officials are currently awaiting trial on a number of issues, including failure to protect workers from asbestos even though the company was familiar with the dangers of working with the hazardous material.

The Health Department has not released specifics on the number of workers at the NY plant who are dealing with asbestos-related diseases but, at this time, it is believed that less than six have been identified. 

“The department generally withholds such numbers when there are fewer than six cases of a disease,” Pospisil said. “The idea is to protect patient privacy.”

"Some former employees and residents were seen by a physician," she added. "There were six or less in each of these groups."

State officials do not know how many people worked at the Weedsport plant between 1963 and 1989 but say it was likely to have been a small number, reports the Post-Standard.

Concern, however, continues for the 1,900 people who lived in the area of the Weedsport plant in the 1970s who may have been exposed to asbestos in dust clouds.

The article also cited a state health report which noted that some of the waste from the plant may have been trucked around the neighborhood for use as fill, for driveway surfacing, for soil amendments, or other applications.