Urban Redevelopment and Revitalization: The Next Wave of Asbestos Exposures?
It was recently announced that the L Street power plant in South Boston was being put up for sale by its current owner, Exelon Corp. This news likely has developers around Boston ready to pounce on the property, due to its proximity to the booming commercial real estate market of the Seaport District and the ever-increasing property values in South Boston. It is likely that the property will eventually be re-developed as a mixed-use property, featuring office space, residential condominiums and apartments, as well as commercial space. However, the fact that this property served as an active power plant for over a century may lead to a number of obstacles for potential re-development projects.
The former Boston Edison power plant first went into operation in 1892 as a coal-fired power plant. The plant was later transitioned to an oil-fired and later a natural gas plant, until it was retired in 2007. The property occupies 18 acres off of L Street at the border of South Boston and the burgeoning Seaport District. While the Environmental Protection Agency has been monitoring the property in recent years due to issues including contaminated soil and other environmental hazards, any proposed redevelopment projects are likely to be closely scrutinized by state and federal agencies.
Workers at power plants such as the Boston Edison L Street plant were exposed to a great variety of asbestos-containing products, including:
- Boiler insulation and firebrick
- Turbine insulation
- Gaskets and packing used in industrial pumps and valves
- Steam pipe insulation
As a result of these exposures, a large number of former workers at the L Street plant developed mesothelioma, asbestosis, and other asbestos-related conditions. While power plant workers up until the 1980’s were exposed to these products though directly installing or maintaining equipment in the plant, a new wave of exposures is likely to occur when old power plants and industrial spaces are re-developed or demolished. As urban renewal and gentrification takes place in cities across the country, developers and city officials will need to identify and deal with the issue of in-place asbestos being disturbed as former industrial buildings and power plants are renovated into commercial and residential property. Due to the significant amount of asbestos-containing products used in power plants and other industrial buildings through the 1980’s, the expense of remediation could be significant.
The danger of asbestos fibers being released during any demolition of existing structures on the L Street property may limit the options potential developers have in planning the re-development of the property. If existing buildings are to be renovated to become loft-style housing or office space, asbestos remediation contractors will have to make sure existing asbestos insulation on the property is properly encapsulated and secured. Simply demolishing the existing structures on the property may risk releasing airborne asbestos fibers into a heavily populated area. Regardless of what happens with the former L Street Power Plant, it is clear that the next wave of asbestos-related diseases will be caused by asbestos that is currently in place, and is disturbed and release during the course of renovation and demolition of old buildings.
If you or a loved one is an undergoing treatment for lung cancer or mesothelioma and would like to learn more about your rights please call us for free, confidential consultation (617) 451-9191.
For further information regarding the L Street Power Plant click here.
Common Questions About Asbestos Litigation: “Am I a part of a class action? Are we suing my employer?”
One of the most common questions that I receive from my clients who have filed lawsuits for injuries resulting from asbestos exposure is whether their claims are a part of a class action lawsuit. We file individual lawsuits on behalf of our clients; your claims are not part of a class action.
Class actions are a very unique type of lawsuit. They consist of a large class of plaintiffs who have all suffered similar injuries that were caused by a common defendant or defendants. If a settlement is reached in a class action, those settlement proceeds are then divided among the entire universe of plaintiffs that are in the class.
The asbestos lawsuits that we file on behalf of our clients are separate, individual cases that are not connected to any other cases. They are not class actions. Each case has its own complaint and its own civil action number. The injured party and his/or her spouse will be the only plaintiffs named in the case. This ensures that each one of our clients’ cases receives the individual attention that it deserves.
Another common question regarding asbestos lawsuits has been asked over the years is: “Are we going to sue my employer?” The answer here is that the Massachusetts statute that governs workers’ compensation bars any third party tort claims against the claimants’ employers. This means that if you suffer a work-related injury, and you want to recover damages for that injury from your employer, your only remedy is through workers’ compensation. You typically cannot sue your employer in a tort case for a work-related injury; you must go through workers’ compensation.
So who are the defendants in an asbestos case? Asbestos lawsuits typically name as defendants the companies that manufactured and sold the asbestos-containing products to which the injured person was exposed. These companies are required to design safe products and to warn about the dangers associated with the products they manufacture and sell. That did not happen with asbestos. Other potential defendants include companies that sold or distributed asbestos-containing products, as well as those who used asbestos-containing products at their premises. Each asbestos case is unique and the facts of your case will determine who the defendants in your case will be.
At Shepard Law, we take an individual approach with each client and with each case. With our extensive experience litigating asbestos-related personal injury claims, we put our clients in the best situations for them to maximize their recovery. If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with mesothelioma or lung cancer and would like to know more about your rights, please call us for a free, confidential consultation at (617) 451-9191.
This Veterans Day, We Should Also Honor Those Who Were Injured by Asbestos
Each year in November we get the chance to pay tribute to the brave men and women who have served in the armed forces. While all veterans should be honored and thanked 365 days a year, Veterans Day provides us with a special opportunity to thank those who have served our country.
Many of our firm’s clients are veterans who are suffering from asbestos-related diseases, such as mesothelioma and lung cancer. Because of this, I have had the opportunity to work with those who have served in virtually every branch of the military. I always enjoy hearing stories about the things our clients encountered while defending our country, some clients even share old photo albums from their military service. While it is an honor to help these veterans and their families work through the process of litigating asbestos claims, it is also disheartening to know that because of their dedication and service, many veterans will continue to develop asbestos-related diseases every year.
Veteran’s Exposure to Asbestos
Asbestos was commonly used in various roles by the armed forces for many years. Asbestos was found in the equipment in the engine and boiler rooms on Naval vessels, as well as in the brakes and engines of Air Force and Naval aircraft, and in many other products. These products had to be maintained and repaired on a regular basis. That maintenance and repair work released asbestos fibers into the atmosphere, which could have been breathed in by anyone working in the nearby area.
Earlier this year, several attorneys from our firm took a trip to Battleship Cove in Fall River, MA (http://www.battleshipcove.org). We were treated to a tour of the USS Massachusetts and the USS Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. During this remarkable experience we explored every aspect of these vessels, including the engine and boiler rooms – which have remained largely intact from when the ships were operational. It was a particularly poignant experience since many of our clients worked in these engine and boiler rooms as either:
- Machinist Mates
- Boiler Technicians
- Electricians
- Firemen
- Engineers
In fact, asbestos was so prevalent among these positions that the military website miltary.com reported that:
‘Virtually every ship commissioned by the United States Navy between 1930 and about 1970 contained several tons of asbestos insulation in the engine room, along the miles of pipe aboard ship and in the walls and doors that required fireproofing.’
Although the engine and boiler rooms we saw were clean of asbestos, this was not the case when these vessels were operational and it was easy enough to image what the working conditions would have actually been like aboard a Naval vessel during the mid-20th century. At that time, those engine and boiler rooms would have been packed with servicemen, whose work on the equipment would have created a dusty and dirty atmosphere. It was that dust, inhaled by unsuspecting men and women which decades later has caused so many veterans to suffer from asbestos-related illnesses.
Protecting Your Legal Rights
Our office has represented hundreds of veterans in asbestos cases over the years so we understand how and where asbestos was used in military applications. Often, our clients were not even aware that they had come into contact with asbestos until they received a diagnosis of mesothelioma. If you or a loved one is a veteran that has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, you may qualify for additional benefits. Please call us for free, confidential consultation (617) 451-9191.
What You May Not Know About Lung Cancer
November is lung cancer awareness month and with good reason. According to the American Lung Association, “Lung cancer causes more deaths than colorectal, breast and prostate cancers combined. An estimated 158,040 Americans are expected to die from lung cancer in 2015, accounting for approximately 27 percent of all cancer deaths.”
What causes lung cancer?
Most people know that smoking is a major cause of lung cancer and if you’re a man the risk is even higher. In a recent study conducted by the US Surgeon General, it was reported that that male smokers are twenty-five times more likely to develop lung cancer than non-smoking males. Many of us also know that occupational exposure to asbestos is another risk factor that increases your chances of developing lung cancer. However, the general public is not as aware of the synergetic effect that occurs when smoking and exposure to asbestos are combined. For these individual, the risk of developing lung cancer doesn’t just increase – it multiples.
Combining smoking and asbestos exposure multiplies risk
For reasons that are not yet completely understood, asbestos poses a greater risk for lung cancer in individuals who smoke cigarettes. It is generally accepted that smoking and asbestos exposure have a synergistic effect. This means that smoking and asbestos combines in the lungs in a way that multiplies the risks that either would have on its own, although studies differ as to the extent of the multiplying effect.
This multiplying of risks is of great significance because the vast majority of individuals who worked with or around asbestos-containing products were also smokers. Consider the occupations that are most often associated with asbestos exposure:
- Shipyard workers
- Navy veterans, particular those who worked in the engine and boiler rooms
- Insulators, pipecoverers and laggers
- Pipefitters and plumbers
- Boilermakers
- Machinists and millwrights
- Plasterers and drywall installers
- Auto mechanics
Men who worked in these occupations were extremely likely to have smoked. In over twenty years of representing victims of asbestos exposure, I can count on two hands the number of lung cancer cases where my client was a lifelong non-smoker and we can understand why. These trades occurred in environments where smoking was not only allowed, it was socially encouraged. Most construction crews were given smoking breaks during the day.
“I have had clients tell me that they weren’t really interested in smoking, but they started doing it because they didn’t want to be left out of the smoking breaks that their buddies were allowed to take.”
—Mike Shepard
US military veterans were practically told to smoke – until 1975 cigarettes were included in K-rations and C-rations. A machinist mate in the United States Navy worked in an engine room that was loaded with asbestos insulation, gaskets and packing, while regularly smoking cigarettes. It is no wonder that so many of my clients are former Navy firemen, machinist mates, electricians and the like. They spent their working hours in a windowless compartment surrounded by boilers, turbines, pumps, valves and a multitude of other equipment that incorporated asbestos insulation, gaskets and packing. That equipment was in constant need of service and repair, creating daily exposures to asbestos. All the while, these veterans were smoking cigarettes as a way to deal with the stress and monotony of life on board a Navy ship. Now, decades later, those two carcinogens have combined in their lungs to cause cancer.
What can you do?
Throughout this month please join us – advocates, survivors, caregivers and family members – as we show support for the lung cancer community and recognize the toll that both smoking and exposure to asbestos has taken, and continues to take, on the men and women who built this country and the service men and women who have protected it.
We want you to know your rights. If you or a loved one suffers from Mesothelioma or lung cancer, call for information on how we can help. Time is of the essence, so call us today (617) 451-9191.