From 1963 to 1990, W. R. Grace & Co. operated a vermiculite mine and processing mill in Libby, Montana. News reports suggest heightened health concerns in the community relating to the possible effects of exposure to asbestos, a natural component of vermiculite. Grace’s concern is that the people of Libby have many questions and few answers. It is important to provide answers and demonstrate our commitment to the people of Libby. To that end: Grace pledged full cooperation with government agencies in their efforts to determine if there is an ongoing risk to Libby residents from our former operations, which were closed in 1990. We have no evidence that there is, but we, like the people in Libby, want to know the facts. Grace urged federal and state authorities to move forward with the investigations in an open and expeditious manner. Grace maintains contact with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and continues to respond to the agency's requests for historical data on our operations in Libby. Grace is providing funding for community health screenings and medical coverage to anyone in and around Libby who is diagnosed with an asbestos-related illness. EPA asserted that its initial test results showed the presence of asbestos at two former Grace properties in Libby—the old vermiculite loading site at the mouth of Rainy Creek and an old warehouse building on the city’s industrial park site. Notwithstanding the very low levels of asbestos detected, Grace offered to remediate these locations. In preliminary air-sampling tests of 32 homes by the EPA, very low levels of asbestos fibers were detected in one residence. Other early sampling results announced by the EPA were encouraging, but we recognize more sampling remains to be done. In January 2000, Grace announced a sweeping three-part health care program to detect and provide medical insurance for anyone in Libby diagnosed with asbestos-related illnesses. Specifically, Grace pledged to: donate $250,000 a year for as long as necessary to St. John’s Lutheran Hospital in Libby to provide independent health screening to anyone in Libby who wants it assure that the hospital has the necessary infrastructure to conduct independent screenings provide medical coverage to anyone in Libby who, after receiving an independent screening, is diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease We take our responsibilities to the people of Libby and the situation there very seriously. This is a unique situation deserving a dedicated solution. People who have concerns about their exposure to asbestos now will have an independent place to go and be tested. If anyone is diagnosed with an asbestos-related illness, they will have insurance to cover the medical costs of treating it. Grace presented its initial donation of $250,000 to St. John’s Lutheran Hospital in February 2000. This donation is only a first step, and there are no strings attached. St. John's indicated it will use the check to help fund the planning and development of programs aimed at helping community members who have asbestosis and related diseases. Grace promised further funding as needs become clearly identified. We stand by our commitment to do the right thing for the people of Libby. We will continue to be responsible to the people of Libby affected with asbestos-related diseases. Grace reopened an office in Libby to assist the state and the EPA in their ongoing investigation. We also wanted to be available locally so our former employees and anyone else with a question about our operations could talk directly to us. The Grace Libby office is located at 317 Mineral Avenue, telephone number 406-293-3964.