April 5th, 2006

Free medical testing is to be provided for workers and families that may have been exposed to asbestos from the WR Grace site in Hamilton. In a joint venture the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry and the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services will begin the initiative starting with the Hamilton site.

The defunct Hamilton site received vermiculite between 1948 and 1991, and the vermiculite was found to contain the carcinogenic substance asbestos, which can cause a range of health problems including a deadly form of cancer known as mesothelioma.

Between this period it is thought that both workers, families of workers, and residents in the local vicinity could have been exposed to asbestos fibers, which in later years could result in them being diagnosed with one of a range of health problems including this cancer.

Officials are due to start setting up meetings with former workers and households, and it is thought that testing will commence later on this year to try and identify any problems that may be linked to exposure to asbestos.