Skip directly to: content | left navigation | search

Santa Ana, CA

Quick Links

ATSDR Releases Health Consultation for W.R. Grace & Co. Site in Santa Ana, Calif.
Former Employees and Household Members Face Possible Elevated Health Risks from Asbestos Contact

For Immediate Release: Sept. 17, 2003

ATLANTA - A public health consultation of the W.R. Grace & Co. facility in Santa Ana, Calif., by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) concludes that employees who worked at the facility prior to 1994 were exposed to elevated levels of asbestos. Residents of employees' households also may have been exposed to asbestos fibers brought into the household on employees' clothing, skin and hair. Therefore, employees and those who lived in their homes may be at increased risk of asbestos-related diseases.

ATSDR, a public health agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, recommends that former employees of this facility and those who lived in their households learn more about asbestos and see a physician regarding potentially adverse health effects.

"Because of the elevated health risk, ATSDR believes former W.R. Grace employees and members of their households should seek medical follow-up," stated Vikas Kapil, M.D., a specialist in occupational and environmental medicine with ATSDR. "We encourage them to consult with a physician with expertise in the evaluation and management of asbestos-related lung disease."

Prior to 1994, the plant, located at 2502 South Garnsey, processed over 400,000 tons of asbestos-contaminated vermiculite ore mined in Libby, Mont. The vermiculite was exfoliated (heated until it expanded, or "popped"), then used to manufacture other products.

Recent U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) environmental samples from the site showed low levels of Libby asbestos in soils in several areas. Much of the site, however, is paved. No stockpiles of vermiculite or vermiculite waste are present. Air samples collected inside building detected no asbestos fibers, but interior dust samples indicated low levels of asbestos. Current land use in the surrounding area is a mix of commercial, light industrial and residential. The nearest homes are approximately one-quarter mile from the site.

According to James Durant, an ATSDR environmental health scientist, "On-site exposure to asbestos-contaminated soils does not appear to pose a public health hazard to those now living or working in the surrounding area."

Information about what occurred during the period when the plant processed the asbestos-contaminated vermiculite remains incomplete. Whether people living near the site when it was in operation were exposed to asbestos is not known. Also unknown is whether those currently living nearby are being exposed to asbestos from "stoner rock" (un-popped vermiculite), a process waste product which may have been used in the community for various purposes such as fill, driveway surfacing or soil amendments.

The vermiculite ore processed in Santa Ana contained asbestos, which can become airborne and can be inhaled. Exposure to asbestos fibers is associated with serious adverse human health effects, including lung cancer, mesothelioma and asbestosis, a disorder that restricts breathing capacity. Because of the effects associated with asbestos exposure, ATSDR continues a broad range of efforts in Libby and is expanding those efforts to include sites that received and processed Libby ore.

National Asbestos Exposure Review

The Santa Ana site is part of ATSDR's National Asbestos Exposure Review (NAER), being conducted in two phases with other federal, state and local environmental and public health agencies. NAER is an examination of more than 200 sites around the U.S. that received asbestos-contaminated vermiculite ore mined in Libby from the early 1920s until 1990. ATSDR is working closely with EPA and state health partners to determine if a hazard to public health exists at any of the sites.

Phase One of NAER includes an examination of 28 sites chosen because either they were on the EPA "further action" list or they were an exfoliation facility that processed over 100,000 tons of vermiculite from the Libby mine. The Phase One sites received 80 percent of the total tonnage of vermiculite ore shipped from Libby from 1964 to 1990.

The NAER team is working to achieve the following goals:

  • Evaluate the 28 Phase One sites to identify past and present exposure pathways (ways people could have been exposed to asbestos from contaminated vermiculite);
  • Evaluate exposure pathways to determine if a significant public health hazard exists and what actions are necessary to protect public health; and
  • Formulate a plan to determine public health actions at sites not considered in the Phase One evaluation.

The NAER team is working with participating states to ensure national consistency in the evaluations, facilitate health consultations for those sites without a state lead, and compile findings in a comprehensive report. An overview of the first 28 sites will be released by year-end 2004.

The documents may be reviewed in person at the following locations:

Santa Ana Public Library, 26 Civic Center Plaza, Santa Ana, CA 92701 (Telephone: 714-647-5250), or

City of Orange Main Library, 101 N. Center Street, Orange, CA 92866 (Telephone: 714-288-2410)

Public input and questions are encouraged. ATSDR responses will be provided in a comprehensive report that incorporates findings from all 28 sites, and not as an additional release of this site-specific health consultation. Comments on the health consultation must be submitted in writing by Oct. 31, 2003. Mail comments to:

Chief, Program Evaluation, Records and Information Services Branch
ATSDR
1600 Clifton Rd., NE (MS E-60)
Atlanta, GA 30333

The names of those who submit comments will not be printed in a public document. They are, however, subject to release through requests made under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act.

Community members seeking information on the procedures or the content of the health consultation, or copies of the document, may contact Maria Teran-MacIver or Debra Joseph, community involvement specialists, toll free at 1-888-422-8737. Callers should refer to the Santa Ana site.

Further information regarding asbestos and the 28 sites being reviewed is available on the ATSDR website at www.atsdr.cdc.gov/asbestos or at the local repositories listed above.

###

This page last updated on October 29, 2008