Residents who live near a Cheyenne (WY) building lot strewn with asbestos are livid about a federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and state Department of Environment Quality (DEQ) decision to monitor the lot’s air quality rather than clean it up.

According to an article in the Billings (MT) Gazette, state and federal regulators have released a plan for testing whether a lot containing asbestos is releasing the cancer-causing substance into the air. The two agencies have announced that they will set up air monitors downwind of exposed debris piles known to contain asbestos. The first air monitors should be set up by the end of July.

Local residents, however, are concerned that old construction materials could blow loose and release asbestos particles that will threaten their health.

M. Lee Hasenauer, who lives near the property on Lupe Road, said independent contractors who have looked at the site have recommended cleanup.

“We’re totally disappointed in the way DEQ is handling this, and we’re hoping the governor will step in,” Hasenauer told the Gazette. “What they’re trying to do is cover it up so they don’t have to spend the money to clean it up.”

The DEQ maintains, however, that the materials do not present a health hazard to residents who live in the vicinity of the lot. They claim that the asbestos is in a form that is unlikely to be released into the air or into groundwater. They add that the testing should be sufficient in determining any danger from airborne particles.

According to the article, the monitoring plan calls for placing more than a dozen air sampling devices around the perimeter of the lot and three air sampling devices upwind to see how much asbestos is in the air before it gets to the lot.

“We wanted to see if we could develop a worst-case scenario for asbestos particles in the air,” said Tim Post, project manager with the DEQ.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 11th, 2007 at 9:31 am and is filed under Asbestos Exposure. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS feed. Responses are currently closed, but you trackback from your own site.