Asbestos in Connecticut

Occupations, Buildings and Environmental Areas at Risk

Many of the jobs that Connecticut residents held were related to marine industries. Groton was named "The Submarine Capital of the World," and the city's Electric Boat Company was the U.S. Navy's leading submarine contractor. The state was also a leading manufacturer of clipper ships in the 19th century and navy submarines in the 20th century.

Connecticut Shipyards

For the first three quarters of the 20th century, almost all ships were constructed with asbestos. The fibers were used as a waterproof insulator, and asbestos materials were wrapped around pipes, gaskets and other machinery in the vessel. Shipyards were confined spaces, and high concentrations of asbestos circulated in the air.

The interior of the ships were designed to be small and enclosed spaces, meaning seamen who occupied ships that were constructed in Connecticut shipyards also faced elevated levels of asbestos in the air.

Military Buildings

Located in Granby, Connecticut, the Bradley Air National Guard squadron headquarters harbored many asbestos products. The Guard often used corrugated asbestos or asbestos-covered metal in their airplane hangars, and asbestos metal was a favored roofing material. In 2009, asbestos-containing floor mastic and caulking were removed from the 7,751-square-foot C-21 Operations Facility Building 18. Previous abatement and air sampling had been performed at the facility in 2006.

The New London Naval Submarine Base on the Thames River in Groton was the world's largest submarine base. By 1959, the base employed 8,210 active personnel. In addition to training and intelligence programs, the base also had its own conversion and repair unit, where potentially asbestos-contaminated parts from naval submarines were removed or replaced.

In 2008, EnviroGuard Asbestos Removal Contractors performed a $398,000 asbestos abatement project on the New Haven Coast Guard buildings. Earlier, the Coast Guard Academy's Chase Hall B Annex was found to contain asbestos tiles. The Coast Guard Museum was also closed in 2011 for asbestos abatement. Due to the Coast Guard's extensive history of asbestos use, other areas of the Connecticut base may have been contaminated with the material.

Other Exposure Sites

Connecticut was also home to many industrial companies where asbestos was frequently used. Chemical factories, power plants, manufacturing plants were all high-risk areas. Connecticut-based companies such as the Smurfit-Stone Container Corporation, Connecticut Yankee Atomic Power Plant and Millstone Power Plant may have exposed their employees to asbestos.

Asbestos was also a common construction material. Many of the older buildings in Connecticut were built in the years when asbestos products were widely used.

Asbestos Injury Cases in Connecticut

In 2003, the wife of a deceased former Air National Guard veteran filed and won a wrongful death case on behalf of her husband, naming Connecticut Air National Guard as the primary defendant. The Air National Guard appealed the case in 2007, but the courts upheld their original ruling in favor of the plaintiff.

In March 2009, the family of a deceased Groton aircraft carrier veteran filed a wrongful death case in Connecticut courts. The family of the man, who repaired Allis-Chalmers aircraft engines, was awarded a $2.6 million verdict. This case was the first asbestos lawsuit in the state in 22 years to be taken to a jury.

Governmental Asbestos Regulations

The Asbestos Program in Connecticut makes sure that asbestos is removed properly as required by law. The program works with the Environmental Practitioner Licensing Unit to regulate asbestos abatement contractors and asbestos consultants. The Asbestos Program is also responsible for ensuring that asbestos-containing materials in schools are correctly managed. These regulations apply to all public and private, not-for-profit schools for kindergarten to grade 12.

The Connecticut Department of Health's asbestos regulation is essentially the same as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 1986 Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act. The act was designed to govern the use of asbestos and to better inform the public. Signed in conjunction with the Asbestos School Hazard Abatement Reauthorization Act, it requires special training for all personnel working with asbestos in schools and public buildings.

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