Settlement Reached in Vermont Asbestos Mine Cleanup

A settlement has been reached with the owner of a former asbestos mine in northern Vermont to help cover the costs of some pollution controls.

Vermont Asbestos Group also has agreed to pursue $3.5 million in insurance money that could help pay for maintenance and operation of pollution controls at the former mine in Eden and Lowell.

According to court papers filed this week, the company will pay $50,000 to the state of Vermont over the next 10 years, aside from the possible insurance money.

The Burlington Free Press reports that the asbestos mine, located on 1,500 acres, operated in the two towns for nearly a century, closing in 1993 after scientists determined that airborne asbestos fibers caused cancer.