Landfill soil exchange may create asbestos problems

Jamestown, California - Jamestown, California officials have a plant to use soil from the Jamestown Mine site to help close the Jamestown Landfill. The plan has received approval from the advisory Jamestown Area Planning Commission and will go before the Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors for final approval in June, but some residents are concerned about the possibility of asbestos contamination occurring during the soil switch. The plan is part of the county’s efforts to avoid fines of up to $10,000 per day by meeting a state-mandated deadline to close the old Jamestown Landfill site as soon as possible. In order to avoid paying hefty fines the work has to be started by July 1 and completed by December 31, 2008. To be able to close the landfill, the plan is to remove 41,500 cubic yards of soil from the Jamestown Mine site, which is owned by the county. The mine is just three miles away from the landfill, and Tuolumne County Geographic Information Systems coordinator Larry Beil says using the soil from the mine could save as much as $300,000 on the costs of soil and transporting it to the landfill. The soil will be taken from piles of soil that were removed from the mine site before the mining began. Deputy County Administrator Daniel Richardson believes it’s good for taxpayers, but Jamestown resident Joan Gorsuch is worried about using soil from the mine due to the possibility of some type of contamination occurring. Her main concern is that asbestos may be released into the air. Asbestos is naturally present in the soil at the mine site. The substance is present in a large amount of the earth’s crust in very low concentrations, but there are asbestos deposits present in many locations where the concentration is much higher. Asbestos is dangerous when fibers become airborne, as they can then be inhaled into the lungs. Over time, asbestos embedded in the lungs can cause chronic lung conditions and a type of asbestos cancer called mesothelioma. Daniel Richardson says that workers will take precautions to prevent the release of large amounts of dust into the air, just as would occur in any type of construction project. In addition, he says, the work will only be carried out during the day on weekdays. The work is planned to start as soon as approval is obtained. The project will be completed at a cost of close to $6 million, which includes the cost of previous failed measures taken to close the dump site. (Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News)