November 30th, 2010 - A town in Arizona has received a $56,000 grant to clean up a small amount of asbestos in the buildings, reports CBS news affiliate KSWT.com.
The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality approved the grant after town officials in Parker, Arizona, told the organization it needed funding to turn three buildings into places that comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Officials already won a grant from community development groups to make the town hall/police station, a senior center and Parker's library handicap accessible, but those funds could not be used towards asbestos removal.
Two of the buildings were reportedly built in the 1960s and the other in 1983. Prior to the 1980s, asbestos was commonly used for insulation purposes and its dangers were not considered wide-spread knowledge.
Today, the American Cancer Society classifies the deadly material as the main cause of mesothelioma, a rare form of untreatable cancer.
Once asbestos is inhaled, cancerous cells can develop in the lungs or surrounding cavity, but symptoms may not appear for decades.
People who worry they may have contracted an asbestos-related cancer, such as mesothelioma, often seek compensation through asbestos law firms.
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