The embattled WR Grace Company, currently in bankruptcy due to an onslaught of asbestos lawsuits stemming from its vermiculite mine in Libby, Montana, has asked a judge overseeing its bankruptcy case to bar asbestos-related lawsuits against Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway Co. over the railroad’s objections to the legal protection.

According to an article in the Baltimore Sun, “Grace’s effort to resolve more than 100,000 asbestos claims it faces would be more difficult if Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad Company (BNSF) starts defending itself against 113 lawsuits involving the railroad’s transportation of vermiculite ore in Libby, Mont.,” Grace attorney David M. Bernick contended yesterday in court. BNSF transported vermiculite from the Montana mine until it closed in 1990.

About 600 town residents and former railroad workers have filed suit against BNSF, claiming the railroad’s transportation of vermiculite ore exposed them to asbestos and therefore put them at risk for developing asbestos-related diseases, such as asbestosis and mesothelioma.

BNSF, however, wants to be able to defend itself in these cases “before memories fade and witnesses die,” the company said in court records.

Lawyers for Grace contend that those suing BNSF will eventually sue Grace as well. The BNSF cases would give plaintiffs’ attorneys “the chance to collect evidence that would later be used as leverage against Grace in negotiations,” Bernick told the judge.

Judge Fitzgerald agreed to sign an order allowing BNSF to pursue legal claims against its insurers, but has not yet ruled on Grace’s motion to extend the ban on lawsuits to BNSF, the article points out.

A spike in asbestos-related cancer among Iron Range workers in Minnesota has prompted a regional and national call for better data collection on work-related illnesses.

Testimony before the Minnesota House of Representatives last week outlined a 25-year history of attempts to address questions about mining occupations and respiratory diseases – questions that concerned mine workers say still exist today.

Minnesota is proposing two new studies that will help better answer questions concerning asbestos-related diseases and how they link to workers who have been employed in Minnesota’s taconite mines for decades.

The mining industry is not the only one that has seen an increase in cases of malignant mesothelioma. Tens of thousands of veterans who worked aboard ships between World War II and the mid 1970s have been exposed, and the shipbuilding industry has experienced a huge increase in cases of mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases, such as asbestosis, in the last several years.

Some experts believe that these diseases will peak between 2010 and 2017 because they remain silent in the body for decades, with symptoms finally surfacing between 20 and 50 years after exposure. Currently, approximately 2,000 new cases are reported in the United States each year. Other countries, like England and Australia, report a higher number of annual cases.

Information and education is key when it comes to dealing with these diseases, especially as more and more research is conducted and chances for early detection arise. Sites like Asbestos.com help asbestos-related disease victims and their family members gather particulars about the disease while answering questions about doctors, treatments, support groups, and available resources for patients. Sites like this one have become invaluable sources of information for workers in high risk jobs who may or may not have been informed as to their potential for developing such diseases.