A new study conducted by mesothelioma doctors in Libby, Montana says that more residents there will develop lung disease from asbestos exposure in the community and its surrounding area.

Doctors Brad Black and Alan Whitehouse worked with scientists from Detroit and New York City on the study which focused on 11 cases that had not been reported before.

None of the people involved in the new cases suffered workplace exposure at the notorious W.R. Grace vermiculite mine. Instead, doctors say they probably were exposed to low levels of asbestos in the town, in areas close to Grace’s mine or processing plants, or along railroad tracks.

They also say the small Montana town can expect an mesothelioma epidemic over the next 20-30 years because of that low-level exposure.

The mine was closed in 1990 and the town has since been declared an EPA Super-Fund site. Some say that Libby is the worst case of contamination in the nation.

Exposure to asbestos can cause a chronic lung disease called asbestosis, as well as mesothelioma. Due to an extensive latency period, these diseases often develop decades after exposure occurs, which can greatly complicate mesothelioma treatment.

If you or a loved one was exposed to asbestos, attorneys can help you recover some compensation.

If the Environmental Protection Agency succeeds in relaxing the rules on asbestos safety, those who suffer from asbestos exposure and mesothelioma will find it more difficult to be compensated by the companies that harmed them.

In their disregard for worker safety, automotive, construction, mining, and chemical industries are pressuring the EPA to change how the risk of exposure from six types of asbestos regulated by the government are calculated. To fuel this change, the EPA is focusing specifically on studies that suggest that chrysotile asbestos (the most common type of asbestos) does not cause mesothelioma, an asbestos-caused fatal cancer. Lawyers defending the corporations say that this change would increase the chances of convincing juries that the asbestos they used wasn’t dangerous.

It is also believed that the Bush White House is a motivator of the EPA’s change in position in a last-minute rush to diminish the government’s regulation of hazardous substances before leaving power. President Bush has fought against worker’s rights in their ability to sue asbestos companies throughout his two terms.

Exposure to asbestos is the single known cause of pleural mesothelioma, a fatal type of cancer that attacks the lungs and presently does not have a cure.

Sen. Patty Murray, an advocate for worker protection, has said, “For eight years, this administration has failed to make any significant progress in improving the health and safety of our nation’s workers. Now, in its waning days, it appears that they are actually trying to increase barriers to workplace safety.”

According to lawmakers and public health experts, the Bush White House is trying to relax the regulation of toxic substances in the workplace. The Labor Department has made a proposal to alter the way it measures the risk of asbestos, silica dust, beryllium, and other harmful chemical substances. This proposal would force regulators to alter the methods used to determine on-the-job risks.

Big businesses have continually complained about these regulations that cost them money but protect the health and safety of their workers by saying that the government overestimates worker exposures to chemicals and toxins.

A former Department of Labor appointee, Diana Furchgott-Roth, has said, “These days workers frequently don’t work in the same job for 40 hours a week for a 45-year career.”

Many experts and critics of the proposal say that Furchgott-Roth’s statements exist only to get businesses off the hook, and that many exposure levels are already unsafe. Even though many experts have spoken against the proposal, the Environmental Protection Agency can still make the change.

This EPA proposal has come “out of nowhere” and is another effort for the Bush administration to end workers’ ability to rightfully sue their employers. However, there may be hope. David Michaels, an epidemiologist from George Washington University, has said “The next administration will essentially either have to roll back or accept it [the reform], which would mean that any new rule would take a year or two longer to get out.”

If you or a loved one has been hurt and is suffering from the effects of hazardous substances in the workplace, call the experienced attorneys at Cappolino Dodd Krebs LLP today at 1-888-MESO-FIRM (1-888-637-6347).