It's time to stop asbestos fear-mongering

Letter to the Editor:

I write to throw down The Banish Stupidity Flag (B.S.) against the recent editorial submitted by the verbose, enviro-fearmonger Terry Trent. Without questioning Mr. Trent’s concern for the health of Libby dwellers, it is now pushback time against emotional out-of-staters who enjoy inserting hysteria into difficult environmental decisions that seriously affect the real economy in Montana.

Terry Trent puffs his credentials with the term biologist and does hold a college degree in biology. He seriously shoots his own foot, however, when he refers to Libby asbestos fibers in ambient air as an “offending toxin.” A true biologist would know that toxins (see your dictionary) are only formed by organic entities like bacteria in food or in a wound. While harmful, asbestos fibers are basically minerals that can sometimes get airborne and thus, inhaled. It is not easy to get any mineral to stay in the air for any length of time.

Is there any scientific evidence for Trent’s startling new knowledge that asbestos fibers are migrating upward through two feet of topsoil “as if the fibers were never covered up?” The possibility defies logic. That fear bomb, without any independent geologic support, might seem a harmless overstatement unless you are living in a house that’s had the yard already replaced by the EPA. After spending enough money to build 11 Flower Creek Dams and 11 Cabinet Peak Medical Centers, is the EPA in Libby ready to reconsider another top soil exchange on the words of this phony asbestos researcher?

The BS Flag is now sitting on the field of public opinion, Mr. Trent. Justify yourself with some real scientific credentials, give Libby a doable plan of action, or save face by keeping out of Montana affairs. California has 44 counties (of 55) that have naturally exposed mineral seams of asbestos, so you should have plenty of local, fiber fearmongering to keep you busy.

Harry Disney, DVM,

Libby