Ongoing Potsdam asbestos woes entering a new chapter
The village of Potsdam, New York has been steeped in asbestos-related controversy for months. First, a series of cancer-related deaths of long-time village officials who worked in the civic center raised concerns about asbestos in the air.
Asbestos exposure can lead to lung cancer, as well as mesothelioma, a rare cancer that can manifest initially in the lungs, abdomen, or pericardium. A series of asbestos air quality tests were performed, with each test failing to detect asbestos. Then, a village worker raised concerns about the safety of her workplace that were published in a local paper. The next day, she was fired.
Now, asbestos is still a major concern for the people of Potsdam. The village is currently seeking grant money to renovate a facility to upgrade offices and move the courtroom elsewhere. The current courtroom is known to contain asbestos mastic adhesive in the ceiling. Officials are applying for a $600,000 historic preservation matching grant through the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Potsdam Supervisor Marie C. Regan said at the Town Council meeting last week that she hopes to get support for the town’s applications from state and county legislators. "Everybody knows we need to rehab this building. No one’s arguing that part," Mrs. Regan said.
The village has yet to determine how it will use the current courtroom in the civic center, which is currently undergoing an asbestos abatement project. Atlantic Testing recently took 80 samples of flooring and walls and tested the air for a number of substances in the town hall.