"BILLINGS, Mont. — Environmental regulators are moving to end a years-long cleanup along dozens of miles of railroad in two northwestern Montana communities where lung-damaging asbestos from mining has been blamed in hundreds of deaths.

The asbestos came from mining vermiculite that was processed and shipped by rail across the country for use as insulation, as a gardening soil additive and for other purposes.

After two decades of site investigations and cleanup efforts, the Environmental Protection Agency and Montana Department of Environmental Quality are proposing to end their work at railyards in the towns of Libby and Troy and along 42 miles (68 kilometers) of railroad right-of-way.

The rail line will continue to be used, but owner BNSF Railway agreed to manage the area in a way that will protect human health, under a 2020 consent decree with federal authorities. That includes preventing the disturbance of soil and building materials that still contain asbestos."

Matthew Brown reports for the Associated Press March 23, 2022. [2]