Answers: Naturally Occurring Asbestos in El Dorado Hills
First I want to thank everyone for providing information and opinions on this subject. After several flip flops on this issue, hubby and I have determined we will continue to consider EDH as a potential location for a home purchase. I spoke with our pediatrician yesterday, he said it would be like not living in California because there is more sun than other states. He has been practicing for 16 years in the county, and his wife is also in general medicine. They have not seen any asbestos related health problems, and assured me that the medical community in the county is not concerned. They live in Shingle Springs (5 acres accessed by a dirt road) so his wife was initially concerned when the controversy came up. She looked through the very thorough county health records (back to the 1800’s) and did not find anything to cause alarm. This was especially reassuring since it addressed the 20-30 year incubation period.
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10 comments:
Asbestos Found in El Dorado County Pets
Sacramento Bee - August 29, 2004 (notes from the article)
Scientists have reported elevated levels of asbestos in the lungs of pets from western El Dorado County, where development has unearthed the naturally occurring minerals. The sample size is small - four dogs and cats - but officials said the results bolster their plan to investigate whether area residents are exposed.
At recent EPA forums, residents asked whether they endangered their health by living in El Dorado County. There are no black and white answers. They hope to move forward by finding out how much asbestos residents are breathing during their everyday lives.
The four pet's lungs were loaded - with the most asbestos fibers, up to 9.2 million per gram - found in a male dog. An expert, said the lungs of dogs are generally "dirtier" than human lungs, as dogs sniff the ground. They therefore make better asbestos sentinels for humans. Results show elevated lung burdens of the tremolite/actinolite type of asbestos in the dogs but the number of studies on dog lungs are too few for comparison.
For years, the dog's owner fought to contain the asbestos dust on his 10-acre spread and said he saw no way out but to let the bank repossess the seven-bedroom home he built. His couch cat who died of old age, also retained amphibole fibers, an estimated 86,000 to 157,000 per gram. The other dog owner learned that his dog's lungs had up to 1.25 million tremolite- actinolite fibers lodged in its breathing tissues.
Did you see this one?
I saw references to it in several of my internet searches. Between the pets and the UCD study you cited, I was ready to move out of the area. But then talked to my daycare director, they tested negative, as well as our pediatrician and changed my mind.
Certainly appreciate your concern and research though.
Oh well, we tried
I've come to realize that for the asbestos issue in EDH, it comes down to being a personal issue for most people to decide on. There's evidence supporting both sides of the argument, so I think it comes down to how much risk a person is willing to take. Example: We know that smoking causes lung cancer. However, not everyone who smokes will get lung cancer. Will everyone that lives in EDH get sick from asbestos? Certainly not. Will some? IMHO, your answer to that determines your willingness to live there.
For me it's a no brainer but then I'd never smoke either >; )
I have accute asthma. Even a former smoker's house can be problem.
Well I'm the same person who had a glass of wine or two and ate a little sushi while pregnant, did't boil the water for the formula (but did breastfeed), and occasionally slept my colicy daughter on her tummy when she was an infant. These are things many would not contemplate based on current scientific findings.
Its all about individual comfort levels.
Ok, so you decided that EDH is an ok place to live. You may be right, we all really will not know for a long time. However, according to this couple tremolite rock sort of just crumbles into the air, so if you see it recognize it for what is and stay away from it, sort of like poison oak.
Lance McMahan and his wife Sherri also thought they had found a good place to settle when they moved to the El Dorado Hills. But after learning about the tremolite, they decided they couldn’t continue to expose their two children and moved out of the area.
"I picked up some of the tremolite in my hand and crumbled it, except it didn’t really crumble, it just dissolved into the air, " McMahan says. . "I looked around and saw kids on their bikes and realized just how hazardous it was. "
AgentBubble beat me to it..
You are informed of the asbestos fibers that have been found in air samples etc. in EDH. So, fact: There is airborne asbestos. And it is an absolute fact that asbestos causes cancer. So you are making an informed choice to take the risk..like smokers who joke about their cancer sticks, coffin nails until they get diagnosed with cancer.. Well everyone's going to die someday I guess.
I just wouldn't go by a pediatrician's advice on this, EDHs hasn't seen the growth until recent history and mesothelioma wasn't even diagnosed generally in the first half of last century. Just call it what it is, you're dying to live in EDH, it must be a very special place.
All else being equal....we wouldn't chose EHD. But all else is not equal. It is hard to find a nice community near a lake as well as a major population center nestled in some nice foothills.
In all honesty, I don't really like the new EDH and all the upscale development. It makes me very uncomfortable, as I came from rather humble roots. As of late, I am seriously considering looking farther up the hill.
Have you considered Cameron Park? Good mix of older/newer homes. I've heard the schools are pretty good too.
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