The Libby Montana W.R. Grace & Co. environmental trial is in its eighth week with testimony from a government witness that
described the imminent risk of asbestos exposure to Libby residents.
Expert Richard Lemen said the mineral’s
needle-like fibers build in a person’s lungs over time and that the more asbestos one inhales over time, the more they are pushed
toward disease. WesternNews.com reports:
“Asbestos-related disease is dose response related … that is, the higher the exposure, the higher the risk of getting a disease,” Lemen said. “The risk is how much a person takes into their body, as their body accumulates these indestructible fibers, that’s when we see disease.” Lemen was allowed to testify Monday only as an expert epidemiologist after Judge Donald Molloy ruled that the prosecution could not also offer him as an expert industrial hygienist because they did not previously disclose him as one. Lemen served in the U.S. Army assessing health issues before going on to a decorated career in the Public Health Service, reaching the highest non-politically appointed position in the agency.
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