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While Colorado’s rocky, mountainous landscape is home to many naturally-occurring deposits of asbestos, most asbestos exposure and mesothelioma diagnoses in the state have been linked to industrial jobsites and certain occupations. Asbestos was commonly used as a heat retardant in power plants, oil refineries mechanic shops and manufacturing industries.
Asbestos was often included as a component in the insulation of power plants, which used the fibers to protect against fires from overheating machinery. Workers in power plants could have been exposed to these dangerous materials when they repaired machinery that used asbestos as a form of insulation. Other workers were directly exposed to asbestos when manufacturing products that used this material, such as roofing compounds and other materials used in the construction industry. Oil refineries also used asbestos in various equipment.
Also, everal mining operations, including the Calumet Mine, CF&I Company Mine and Hecla No. 2 Mine, which were all located on amphibole deposits. Other mines including the Dolores Co. Falcon Mine and the Iron King Mind in the Tomichi District were located on tremolite asbestos deposits. While these mines did not directly produce asbestos, the mineral could have been disturbed during mining of other materials.
In addition to the exposure that workers may have experienced, families of workers may have also developed secondhand exposure to asbestos. Workers would carry asbestos fibers home with them on their body and clothing, which may have been breathed in or ingested by other family members. If you or a loved one was diagnosed with meosthelioma or an another asbestos related condition, contact our law firm to learn about your legal rights, lawsuits, and trust fund claims.
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Colorado Asbestos Regulatory Agencies
Colorado Asbestos & Mesothelioma Diagnoses
Colorado Laws Concerning Asbestos
Colorado Statute Of Limitations
Colorado Asbestos Trust Funds
Colorado Mesothelioma Verdicts and Settlements
Colorado Asbestos Exposure Site List
Colorado Mesothelioma Law Firms
Colorado Mesothelioma Diagnoses
According to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, the Colorado annual incidence rate of malignant mesothelioma is approximately 13 per million. Between 1999 and 2015, a minimum of 484 Colorado residents were diagnosed with mesothelioma. At least 199 people were diagnosed with asbestosis between 1999 and 2013, and another 1,796 were diagnosed from non-mesothelioma lung cancer.
The majority of individuals were located in the following Colorado cities:
Denver – Colorado Springs– Aurora – Fort Collins – Lakewood – Arvada – Broomfield – Pueblo – Centennial – Boulder
Colorado Asbestos Regulatory Agencies
The Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment is primarily responsible for regulating asbestos use and removal in the state. It is responsible for certifying and monitoring the certification process for people who remove or disturb asbestos. The Air Quality Control Commission’s Regulation 8, Part B governs the abatement of asbestos in Colorado. There are also extensive regulations regarding the disposal of asbestos and the management of asbestos contaminated soil in the state. These are included in 6 CCR 1007-2 Part 1, Section 5 of the Solid and Hazardous Waste Commission’s Regulations Pertaining to Solid Waste Disposal Sites and Facilities.
According to these regulations, asbestos and other similar terms are defined as follows:
- Asbestos – the asbestiform varieties of serpentinite (chrysotile), riebeckite (crocidolite), amosite (cummingtonite-grunerite), anthophyllite, actinolite and tremolite.
- Asbestos-containing material – any material that contains more than one percent (1%) asbestos.
- Asbestos waste – any asbestos-containing material whether it contains friable or non-friable asbestos, that is not intended for further use. This term includes but is not limited to asbestos mill tailings, asbestos from pollution control devices, and containers that contain asbestos.
- Asbestos waste disposal area – an area approved for the disposal of asbestos waste at a solid waste facility, including, but not limited to, a trench or monofill.
In Colorado, asbestos is banned in most types of building materials. However, many buildings can remain erect and are within the legal bounds to have asbestos if they were constructed before bans were implemented against the material as long as the asbestos is below a certain level. If the amount of asbestos in one of these structures exceeds a certain amount of asbestos, a certified asbestos abatement contractor must be hired to remove the material. Before removing any asbestos, the certified contractor must submit a written application to the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment along with a fee at least ten days before commencing work on the project.
When asbestos materials are removed from the structure, they must be properly disposed of at a waste disposal site that is approved for this purpose.
If contractors do not follow the state’s asbestos regulations, they can receive a cease and desist order. If they still fail to follow the regulations, they can be required to go to court or can ask the commission for e hearing. If violations are determined, the contractor can be fined up to $25,000 per day, depending on the potential danger to the public health and the seriousness of the alleged violation.
Colorado Asbestos Laws
Some important laws that potential asbestos claimants should be aware of if planning on brining a case in Colorado include:
Statute of Limitations
Colorado has a two-year statute of limitations for personal injury and wrongful death cases. This means that the victim has two years from the time he or she is diagnosed with mesothelioma or another asbestos-related medical condition to file a lawsuit against the party responsible for exposure. If the individual dies from mesothelioma exposure, his or her family has two years from the date of death to file the lawsuit.
Court Exposure Standard
Colorado has adopted the Lohrmann test for establishing the link between the defendant’s product and the victim’s diagnosis. The plaintiff must be able to establish that the defendant’s particular product was a substantial contributing cause of his or her injury. This often requires testimony regarding the time of exposure and the events that could have resulted in exposure from the product.
Colorado Asbestos Site Exposure List
Colorado has many natural deposits of asbestos. Additionally, there are many worksites that historically exposed workers to asbestos. Some of the sites that have been linked to asbestos exposure include:
- American Gilsonite Company – Grand Junction
- Climax Uranium Company – Grand Junction
- Continental Oil – Grand Junction
- Grand Valley Oil & Shale – Grand Junction
- Redlands Water & Power Company – Grand Junction
- Walker Lybarger Construction Company – Grand Junction
- Abex Corporation – Denver
- Monfort Packing Company – Greeley
- Waterton Sand and Clay Inc. – Englewood
- Ozark Mahoning Company – Englewood
- Alamosa Community Hospital – Alamosa
- Alamosa Power Plant – Alamosa
- Atmospheric Research Center – Boulder
- Boulder High School – Boulder
- University of Boulder – Boulder
- Beet Sugar Factory – Brush
- Arkansas Valley Railway Light and Power Company – Canon City
- West Plains Energy – Canon City
- Martin Drake Power Plant – Colorado Springs
- Conoco Oil Refinery – Commerce City
- Rocky Mountain Arsenal – Commerce City
- Shell Chemical – Commerce City
- Craig Power Station – Craig
- Cherokee Power Station – Denver
- Rawhide Energy Station – Fort Collins
- Great Western Sugar Company – Fort Collins
- Hayden Power Plant – Hayden
- AMC Research Center – Lakewood
- Day Mines, Inc. – Leadville
- Leadville Gas and Electric Company – Leadville
- Colorado Fuel & Iron Corporation – Minnequa
- Acme Markets Inc. – Pueblo
- American Smelting and Refining Company – Pueblo
- CF&I Steel Corp. – Pueblo
- Pueblo Smelting and Refining Company – Pueblo
- Rock Wool Insulating Company – Pueblo
- Southern Colorado Power Company – Pueblo
- Dow Chemical Company – Rocky Flats
- United States Atomic Energy Commission – Rocky Flats
- Rocky Ford Power Plant – Rocky Ford
- Southern Colorado Power Company – Rocky Ford
- Electrical Installation Company – Trinidad
- Trinidad Electric Light Heat and Power Company – Trinidad
- Valmont Station – Valmont
- Owens Corning Fiberglass – Windsor
- Eastman Kodak Company – Windsor
Colorado Asbestos Trust Funds
Asbestos trusts have been established across the country to provide compensation to victims who were exposed to asbestos. These trusts were typically established as part of a bankruptcy filing, usually after a company was sued by hundreds or thousands of victims due to asbestos exposure.
Colorado has one such fund that was established called the Manville Personal Injury Settlement Trust. The trust involves the Johns-Manville Corp. and the Philadelphia Asbestos Corp. (Pacor). The trust handles claims from employees of these companies who were exposed to asbestos fibers. The trust includes estimated funds of $2.5 billion. It was established in 1988 and is considered an active trust. The company headquarters is located in Denver, Colorado.
Colorado Mesothelioma Lawsuits
News reports show Colorado courts have heard several asbestos lawsuits. One of the earlier cases was filed in 1986 by former employees of a number of companies that used asbestos, including Harbison-Walker Refractory and John Crane, Co. The former employees sued after developing asbestos-related diseases from asbestos exposure on the job. They were awarded compensation for their injuries.
News reports have also indicated some schools in Colorado have been built with asbestos products. For example, the Adams-Arapahoe School District filed a lawsuit against more than a dozen companies that manufactured asbestos-containing materials in various schools in Aurora. The lawsuit was for the payment of having to remove damaged asbestos products that the school district believed could have exposed students and teachers to asbestos. Originally, the school district was awarded the abatement costs. However, this decision was overturned by the Court of Appeals, which held the school district failed to provide sufficient evidence that anyone at the district had suffered an illness related to asbestos.
Colorado Mesothelioma Attorneys
We are a mesothelioma law firm dedicated to helping individuals who have been diagnosed with asbestos-related medical conditions. We can travel across the country and to the state of Colorado:
