October 13th, 2004

Up until the 1970s, asbestos was a very widely used mineral, and was found in a wealth of products, from car brakes to insulation. However, although asbestos was used in many industries until the late 1970s, it was later discovered that manufacturers and many companies using asbestos were aware of its dangers for many decades, but failed to make employees aware of the dangers.

Union Carbide was one such manufacturer, and was in fact one of the only asbestos production plants in the area for years. Located near King City, CA, this manufacturer employed many people and had a huge demand for Calidria asbestos, in which it specialized.

Over a number of decades both workers at he mill and local residents were exposed to this asbestos. The asbestos was obtained from the Diablo Mountains, which were a rich source of this mineral in those days and is still thought to be one of the richest asbestos sources around.

It is thought that Union Carbide for les than forthcoming with information on the dangers of asbestos, which means that many of the ex-employees are now starting to worry about their health and the implications of the asbestos they were exposed to. In fact, it transpired that the medical director at Union Carbide sent a booklet and letter to another manager when the plant opened. The booklet contained information about lung cancer and the dangers of asbestos. There was also a letter stating that it was “not the sort of book we would want readily available to plant personnel in general.”