Asbestos In Shipyards

Mare Island Naval Shipyard

Mare Island Naval Shipyard is a special place on the west coast of the Untied States that has an important history to it. This area was the first shipyard on the western coast for the United States Navy. It is in the vicinity of San Francisco and played an important part during both World Wars for the United States. It also has a sad history concerning men who became ill and contracted mesothelioma due to asbestos exposure.

Before the World Wars, Mare Island Naval Shipyard played an important part in the early battles. Since the Navy owned the area and started production and operation in 1854, this area played an important part in the Civil War as well. Also, many Navy ships were sent out of Mare Island Naval Shipyard to protect the United States from Native American uprisings in the west as well as sending patrol boats to the Central America region to make sure that the American interests in that area were protected. Mare Island Naval Shipyard was an important hub during the 1800's for battleships.

In World War I, Mare Island Naval Shipyard was an important part to the western battlefront. Mare Island Naval Shipyard broke the record for building a destroyer faster than any other shipyard in the United States. During World War II, Mare Island Naval Shipyard seemed to be the center of the war efforts in the Pacific. Most of the ships that needed built or repaired were sent to Mare Island Naval Shipyard. The Pacific Ocean played an important part in the World Wars and without places like Mare Island Naval Shipyard, major battles could have been lost that would have changed the course of the entire war. Mare Island Naval Shipyard was one of the places on the Pacific Coast that made it impossible to attack the United States from the west.

But the more ships were built the more the workers were exposed to asbestos. This led to many people contracting the fatal mesothelioma illness, destroying families. It is sad that history shows that for men to support their families they had to endanger themselves to such an extent.

After the World Wars, Mare Island Naval Shipyard became a major nuclear submarine shipyard. They held the first nuclear submarine on the Pacific Coast. Eventually in the early 1990's, this area was closed as a Naval Shipyard. It was leased back to commercial industries as well as other government agencies including Forest Services and the Coast Guard. The military agencies believe that providing these areas that have shut down, such as Mare Island Naval Shipyard, to the commercial and residential markets allow a boost in the area economically.

There are many different places that the Mare Island Naval Shipyard has been converted to, but the history will remain in the area forever. Even if all of the old remnants of the shipyard are taken down, it will still have a feeling of being a shipyard. Today there are many different types of jobs that are in the Mare Island Naval Shipyard including jobs at the Fish and Wildlife Service refuge, the Army Reserve Center, and a Department of Education office. All of these places have different requirements for working there such as having a teaching degree for the Department of Education for example. All of these places of employment have made the economic advance of the area that was once Mare Island Naval Shipyard extremely healthy. It is also important to note that asbestos is no longer used and the risk of getting mesothelioma is next to non existent.

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