The Libby Asbestos Superfund Advisory team, established earlier in the year by the Montana Legislature, met for the first time on Thursday, September 21st. This team, alongside environmental agencies, will work to develop ideas to prevent additional exposure to asbestos from the walls and contaminated soil of the towns of Libby and Troy.
Officials are focusing on keeping residents safe in the long term.
A vermiculite mine that operated for decades outside of Libby is the source of the contaminated material.
Cleanup, which is expected to be completed by next summer, has been ongoing since 1999. As of last year, the cost of cleanup reached $575 million. Currently, there is no cleanup plan for the mine site itself, nor for the sections of the Kootenai National Forest surrounding it.
You can read more about this story here: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/montana-set-deadly-asbestos-cleanup-site-50007109
