Links Between Taconite And Mesothelioma

The Minnesota Department of Health is launching two major studies to answer long-simmering questions about taconite and human health.

The agency says men in northeastern Minnesota have twice the expected rate of a rare form of cancer called mesothelioma.

It's caused by asbestos, but the Health Department wants to find out whether it can also be caused by fibers in the taconite on the Iron Range.

Duluth, Minn. - Mining, and processing taconite, are dirty, dusty jobs. It's hard to avoid breathing the dust from the taconite, which is crushed to the consistency of talcum powder. And asbestos is still used in some older furnaces and other equipment.
A 240 ton truck carries taconite rock to the crusher building at Hibbing Taconite. (MPR Photo/Bob Kelleher)
Jim Kelly retired three years ago from the Northshore mine at Silver Bay. He has a spot on one lung that's probably a precursor to asbestosis. It's a disease that causes shortness of breath and chronic coughing, and indicates an increased risk of lung cancer.

But he's not about to blame taconite for that. He worked in other industries, and was exposed to asbestos on several jobs. He's heard claims about the dangers of taconite for 30 years, and he doesn't think they're based on much.

"It appears to me that the scientific community and the medical community cannot come to agreement on what is the specific hazard here," he says. "At least I have to date never heard anything specific."

Now the Minnesota Department of Health is going to try to find the answers.

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