June 19, 2009
Grace is Gone... I Wish!
Libby Montana has become the first place in the country to be labeled an environmental public health disaster. The EPA is going to spend at least $125 million dollars (included in the stimulus package) to clean up the former asbestos mines and proccessing plants that are causing cancer (mesothelioma) at rates higher than anywhere in the country. So, our tax dollars are paying for a major cleanup as well as the associated health costs tax payers have covered for years.
What makes this story all the more compelling is the company that owned and operated the mines... WR Grace. Some of you might remember they are the same company (one of two) detailed in the movie/book "A Civil Action" concerning the Woburn water pollution up in Massachusetts. This company has knowingly perpetrated some of the greatest environmental crimes of the 20th century and was even brought up on criminal charges for attempting to cover them up (they were acquitted because the judge made many rulings in favor of the defendants).
Additionally, this company has been amongst the largest donors to the Republican Party and tort reform campaigns across the country (gee, I wonder why!). The former CEO, J. Peter Grace, was friends with Ronald Reagan and led a commission that in 1984 recommended we replace career civil servants with outside contractors. This practice was continued by W, leading to Halliburton, Blackwater, etc.
So, to sum up, our tax dollars are paying to clean up someone else's mess. This someone is a close Republican ally that has a history of creating messes across the country with reckless disregard for the impact of their dumping practices on the communities they inhabit. Yet Republicans CONTINUE to argue that we need "tort reform" to become more business friendly.
Posted by MasterConsultant at June 19, 2009 11:28 AM
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