Asbestos: From "miracle" to menace

By Andrea Tortora, The Cincinnati Enquirer

Asbestos cleanup will keep Latonia Elementary closed until at least Wednesday as school officials wait for final test results.

Parents received a letter in the mail telling them that the district did not know when the building would be safe to use.

Until their building reopens, students are taking classes at Northern Kentucky University's Covington campus.

Some parents, meanwhile, are still concerned about the cancer-causing substance and the effect it might have on their children.

Doctors say the short-term exposure to the asbestos dust that Latonia students encountered does not pose a major health threat.

Dr. Lauren Tapp, a resident in occupational health, said students at Latonia Elementary face an "extremely small risk" of health problems from possible asbestos contamination. She said people exposed to asbestos on a daily basis and over a long period are more likely to experience health problems.

Asbestos wasn't always a feared substance. The material was once called the "miracle mineral" because of its durability. The material is mined and has been used for centuries because it is strong, insulates well and resists fire and corrosion.

In the United States, asbestos became popular in the early 1900s as a building material, insulator and fire retardant. Use of the product peaked between World War II and the 1970s, when it could be found in 3,000 products.

Most schools, public buildings and many homes built before 1980 contain asbestos.

The substance was sprayed on ceilings, where it looked like popcorn. It was used in and on walls to deaden sound. Asbestos was wrapped around steam and water pipes, duct systems and boilers. It was used to fireproof beams in steel buildings and in false ceilings. It can be found in floor and ceiling tiles, fireplaces, cement, patching and joint compounds for walls, roofing and siding shingles, and artificial ashes and embers in gas-fired fireplaces.

But by the late 1960s, health studies began to show that asbestos fibers were dangerous. By the late 1970s, the government started issuing warnings.

Solid asbestos -- like the kind used in shingles on houses -- isn't a problem. The danger arises only when it breaks into small, airborne fibers.

Asbestos fibers are 700 times smaller than a human hair. Under a microscope they look like shards of glass.

Because the fibers are so small, they are easy to inhale. That's where the problems arise.

Asbestos fibers are indestructible. They do not dissolve in the air or water and they do not break down over time. That means the body can't break them down or remove them once they enter the lungs or body tissues. Asbestos fibers remain in the body, where they can cause lung disease and multiple forms of cancer.

According to the American Cancer Society, the most common health problems caused by asbestos are:

Asbestosis, a chronic, non-cancerous respiratory disease. Asbestos fibers scar the lung tissues and lead to shortness of breath. The disease is usually fatal and most often affects those who renovate or demolish buildings.

Lung cancer, which affects people who work in the mining, milling, manufacturing and use of asbestos and its products. Asbestos workers who smoke are 90 times more likely to develop lung cancer.

Mesothelioma, a rare cancer that occurs in the thin membrane lining of the lungs, chest, abdomen and heart. About 200 cases are diagnosed each year. Those who work with asbestos or who live with asbestos workers are usually the ones affected.

Other cancers in the esophagus, larynx, oral cavity, stomach, colon and kidney may also be caused by asbestos ingestion.

When studies by numerous universities and government agencies documented the health risks associated with asbestos, a new industry was born.

Many Tristate school districts are still working to remove asbestos. This year, schools in Covington, Franklin, and New Richmond approved asbestos abatement projects.

Difficulties associated with asbestos removal have created other problems. Covington Schools are in a bind because contractors they hired to install Internet wiring were not trained in handling asbestos, which was found in the school's ceiling tiles.

As Covington Schools officials and Latonia Elementary parents are learning, the miracle mineral in the walls and ceilings is now more of a menace.

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