WR Grace

see also RR pal JP==

ewg:
For at least 50 years, from the 1930s through the 1980s the unswerving goal of asbestos users and makers was to keep from workers the undisputed fact that asbestos was a major threat to their health. An internal memo from a W.R. Grace executive summed up the strategy quite clearly:
"The point I am trying to get across is that our present policy is to tell no one anything, no visitors, or discussion of our operations, period."
— 1972 W.R. Grace internal memo [View document]http://static.ewg.org/reports/asbestos/documents/pdf/ASARCO1972.pdf
LA hearing, do not reg merciry or asbetos?KW Nelson...A March 30, 1977 memo from a W.R. Grace health and safety official advised against conducting further study of asbestos-diseased workers out of concern that the information would become public:
"I believe that the results of a study of this nature would become public knowledge within a relatively short period of time regardless of confidentiality agreements. If we are not prepared to deal with that situation, I would advise against proceeding."
— 1977 W.R. Grace memo [View document]http://static.ewg.org/reports/asbestos/documents/pdf/033077.pdf...
In a 1970 W.R. Grace memo regarding sales of its Mono-Kote fire-proofing spray product, which contained twelve percent asbestos, an employee urged:
"Stay unscrupulous, unethical, mean and selling Mono-Kote." [joke? "serously' refers to rival ?]
[View document] http://static.ewg.org/reports/asbestos/documents/pdf/WRG060170.pdf
According to a New York Times investigation of Grace's Monokote product, the company continued selling "re-formulated" Monokote until the late 1980s, labeling it "asbestos-free" despite its knowledge that the product still contained up to 1 percent asbestos. Grace management instructed employees that inquiring customers were to be told the product did not contain any asbestos. Due to Grace's "asbestos free" claim, workers using Monokote stopped wearing protective respirators, believing the reformulated product was safe [The New York Times, 7/9/01].

But the people of Libby, as one dying former employee bitterly complains, are working people, not engineers or scientists; they trusted the company. By the time the EPA began screening Libby residents in 2001, over 1,200 of those tested, or roughly one-quarter of the town’s population, were found to have lung abnormalities associated with asbestos exposure — 10 times the national average. Mesothelioma, a form of cancer caused only by exposure to asbestos, was found to be 1,000 times the national average. And because of the long latency period for asbestosis — as much as 30 years or more — the future for Libby’s residents is clouded by the specter of disease and early death, however successful current efforts to clean up the town have been.

In examining the politics behind the cleanup, as well as behind Grace’s historic ability to disregard worker health, Libby, Montana raises its most troubling questions. How could Grace go on operating the mine for another 20 years after the environmental toxicity became public knowledge? (It was finally closed in 1990.) Even in pro-business Montana, how could state officials continue to cover for a company that declared bankruptcy to avoid liability claims as it allegedly spirited away billions of dollars? By what final cruel twist does the National Priorities Superfund designation sought by townspeople as the only means to fund the cleanup — and opposed by Grace and local business interests — become the very means by which Grace finally abandons the town to taxpayers?

http://www.pbs.org/pov/libbymontana/film-description/

===

dk $ mayer

Meanwhile, another donor, Oliver Grace Jr., a relation of the family that founded the William R. Grace Company, was at the center of a stock-backdating scandal that resulted in his being ousted from the board of Take-Two, the company behind the ultraviolent Grand Theft Auto video games.

==

<div>gangs of america: SPEECH = MONEY</div>

<div>

</div>

<div>Consider the case of Montana. For nearly a century, the state of</div>

<div>Montana was run as a virtual colony by the aptly named Anaconda</div>

<div>Copper Company. Anaconda was born in 1895 out of set of mergers</div>

<div>that followed an intense power struggle for industry dominance known</div>

<div>as the War of the Copper Kings, some of it literally fought as physical</div>

<div>combat in the tunnels of the mines at Butte in the 1890s. The company</div>

<div>had a tradition of corruption and hard-ball political tactics. At one point,</div>

<div>displeased with the decision of a state judge in favor of one of its rivals,</div>

<div>Anaconda shut down all its mines and smelters in the state for three</div>

<div>weeks, cutting off thousands of workers from their paychecks, until the</div>

<div>governor called a special session of the legislature to pass a new bill that</div>

<div>resolved the dispute in favor of the company. Over the next sixty years,</div>

<div>Anaconda maintained its grip on the state, owning all but one major</div>

<div>state newspaper and continuing to dominate the Montana legislature.</div>

<div>While Anaconda’s mines and smelters devastated large tracts of the</div>

<div>state, the company’s political allies quashed attempts to enact legislation</div>

<div>to protect the health of the state’s citizens. Other mining companies</div>

<div>took advantage of the anything-goes regulatory environment created by</div>

<div>Anaconda, with tragic results.</div>

<div>

</div>

<div>

</div>

<div>In the town of Libby, Montana, the W. R. Grace Company operated</div>

<div>a vermiculite mine that spewed 5,000 pounds of highly toxic asbestos</div>

<div>dust into the air every day, according to the company’s own tests.</div>

<div>The connection between asbestos and fatal lung disease had been</div>

<div>known since the 1920s, but efforts by the company to protect its employees</div>

<div>from exposure were minimal at best. Internal reports documenting</div>

<div>the problem were concealed, and the company told workers that the</div>

<div>type of asbestos contained in the mine’s dust was a non-hazardous variety.</div>

<div>By the 1960s, the evidence had become impossible to ignore: numerous</div>

<div>workers in Libby were dying slow, excruciating deaths caused</div>

<div>by debilitating lung ailments including fatal asbestosis (a thickening and</div>

<div>hardening of the lung tissue), mesothelioma (cancer of the lung’s lining),</div>

<div>and lung cancer (cancer of the lung itself). An x-ray survey in</div>

<div>1969 showed that almost half of the people who had worked at the mine</div>

<div>for 11 to 20 years had lung disease; among workers with 21 to 25 years</div>

<div>tenure, the rate was 92 percent. In 1999, a survey by the Seattle Post-</div>

<div>Intelligencer confirmed 192 deaths, with an additional 375 people diagnosed</div>

<div>with fatal lung disease.</div>

==

wiki

<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company</a>

W. R. Grace and Company is a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia,Maryland" title="Columbia, Maryland" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">Columbia, Maryland</a>- based chemical <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conglomerate(company)" title="Conglomerate (company)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">conglomerate</a>. Grace is divided into three business segments — Grace Catalysts Technologies, Grace Materials Technologies and Grace Construction Products. Grace is a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Specialty_chemicals" title="Specialty chemicals" class="mw-redirect" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">specialty chemicals</a> and materials company. It has more than 6,400 employees in nearly 40 countries, and annual sales of more than <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USD" title="USD" class="mw-redirect" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">$2.5</a> billion.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#cite_note-CompanyInfo-1" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[1]</a> The company's stock, listed in 1953, trades on the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Stock_Exchange" title="New York Stock Exchange" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">New York Stock Exchange</a>.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#cite_note-2" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[2]</a>

<h2 style="color: black; margin: 1em 0px 0.25em; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; border: none; display: inline; line-height: 1.3; background: none;">Contents</h2>

[<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#" class="internal" id="togglelink" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">hide</a>] </div>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-1" style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#History" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">1 History</a>

<li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-2" style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#Incorporation" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">1.1 Incorporation</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-3" style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#Shipping" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">1.2 Shipping</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-4" style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#Airline" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">1.3 Airline</a></li>

</ul>

</li>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-5" style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#Headquarters" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">2 Headquarters</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-6" style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#Subsidiaries_and_products" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">3 Subsidiaries and products</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-7" style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#Contamination_incidents" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">4 Contamination incidents</a>

<li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-8" style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#Asbestos" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">4.1 Asbestos</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-9" style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#Asbestos_court_case" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">4.2 Asbestos court case</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-10" style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#In_popular_culture" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">4.3 In popular culture</a></li>

</ul>

</li>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-12" style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#References" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">6 References</a></li>

</ul>

</div>

<h2 style="font-weight: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0.25em; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); line-height: 1.3; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">Contamination incidents[<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=W.R.Grace_and_Company&action=edit&section=7" title="Edit section: Contamination incidents" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">edit</a>]</h2>

W. R. Grace and Company has been involved in a number of controversial incidents of proven and alleged corporate crimes, including exposing workers and residents of an entire town to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asbestos" title="Asbestos" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">asbestos</a> contamination in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libby,Montana" title="Libby, Montana" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Libby</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#cite_note-26" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[26]</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troy,Montana" title="Troy, Montana" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Troy</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montana" title="Montana" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Montana</a>, water contamination (the basis of the book and film <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Civil_Action" title="A Civil Action" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">A Civil Action</a>) in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woburn,Massachusetts" title="Woburn, Massachusetts" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Woburn, Massachusetts</a>, and an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acton,Massachusetts" title="Acton, Massachusetts" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Acton, Massachusetts</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superfund" title="Superfund" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Superfund</a> site.

<h3 style=" margin: 0.3em 0px 0px; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; border-bottom-style: none; line-height: 1.6; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">Asbestos<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select: none; font-weight: normal; margin-left: 1em; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1em; display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;">[<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=W.R.Grace_and_Company&action=edit&section=8" title="Edit section: Asbestos" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">edit</a>]</h3>

While Grace no longer makes <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asbestos" title="Asbestos" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">asbestos-related products</a>, W. R. Grace and Company has faced more than 270,000 asbestos-related lawsuits. 150,000 lawsuits have been settled or dismissed and 120,000 remain.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#cite_note-history-27" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); white-space: nowrap; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">[27]</a>

After asbestos injury claims unexpectedly nearly doubled in 2000, W. R. Grace & Company filed for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bankruptcy_protection" title="Bankruptcy protection" class="mw-redirect" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">bankruptcy protection</a> in 2001. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_Justice" title="United States Department of Justice" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">United States Department of Justice</a> alleged that Grace had transferred 4 to 5 billion dollars to daughter companies that it had recently purchased, shortly before declaring bankruptcy. Justice Department attorneys alleged that this amounted to a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraudulent_transfer" title="Fraudulent transfer" class="mw-redirect" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">fraudulent transfer</a> of money in order to protect Grace from civil suits related to asbestos. The bankruptcy court ordered the companies to return nearly $1 billion to Grace, which will remain as part of the assets to consider in the bankruptcy hearings.

<h3 style=" margin: 0.3em 0px 0px; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; border-bottom-style: none; line-height: 1.6; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">Asbestos court case<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select: none; font-weight: normal; margin-left: 1em; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1em; display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;">[<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=W.R.Grace_and_Company&action=edit&section=9" title="Edit section: Asbestos court case" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">edit</a>]</h3>

In 2005, the U.S. Department of Justice began criminal proceedings against W.R. Grace. On February 7, 2005, the department announced that a grand jury in Montana indicted W.R. Grace and seven current and former Grace executives for knowingly endangering residents of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libby,Montana" title="Libby, Montana" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">Libby, Montana</a>, and concealing information about the health effects of its asbestos mining operations. According to the indictment, W. R. Grace and its executives, as far back as the 1970s, attempted to conceal information about the adverse health effects of the company’s <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vermiculite" title="Vermiculite" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">vermiculite</a> mining operations and distribution of vermiculite in the Libby, Montana, community. The defendants are also accused of obstructing the government’s cleanup efforts and wire fraud. To date, according to the indictment, approximately 1,200 residents of Libby area have been identified as suffering from some kind of asbestos-related abnormality.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R._Grace_and_Company#cite_note-28" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[28]</a>

The criminal trial began in February 2009 after years of pretrial proceedings which reached the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Supreme_Court" title="United States Supreme Court" class="mw-redirect" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">United States Supreme Court</a>.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#cite_note-29" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[29]</a> By the time the trial was set to begin, one of the defendants, Alan Stringer, had died of cancer. David Uhlmann, a former top environmental crimes prosecutor has been quoted as saying about W.R. Grace & Co.: "There's never been a case where so many people were sickened or killed by environmental crime." The W.R. Grace case long festered in the court system on a 10-count indictment including charges of wire fraud and obstruction of justice. W.R. Grace has voluntarily paid millions of dollars in medical bills for 900 Libby residents.[<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">citation needed</a>]

On Friday, May 8, 2009, W.R. Grace & Co. was acquitted of charges that it knowingly harmed the people of Libby, Montana. It was also acquitted of subsequently participating in any cover-up. Fred Festa, chairman, president and CEO said in a statement, "the company worked hard to keep the operations in compliance with the laws and standards of the day.[<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">citation needed</a>]

<h3 style=" margin: 0.3em 0px 0px; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; border-bottom-style: none; line-height: 1.6; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">In popular culture<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select: none; font-weight: normal; margin-left: 1em; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1em; display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;">[<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=W.R.Grace_and_Company&action=edit&section=10" title="Edit section: In popular culture" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">edit</a>]</h3>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">The movie <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Civil_Action" title="A Civil Action" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">A Civil Action</a>, starring <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Travolta" title="John Travolta" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">John Travolta</a>, was based on the Grace groundwater contamination law suits in Woburn, MA.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PBS" title="PBS" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">PBS</a> television show <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P.O.V." title="P.O.V." class="mw-redirect" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">P.O.V.</a>, which highlights independent films, in August 2007 premiered the movie <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libby,Montana(film)" title="Libby, Montana (film)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">Libby, Montana</a> that documents the thousands of people in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libby,_Montana" title="Libby, Montana" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">Libby, Montana</a>, that have been exposed to and are suffering the effects of exposure to asbestos. The show also discusses the criminal indictments of many Grace executives for covering up the asbestos related illnesses and deaths.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">PBS also aired "Dust to Dust", a documentary produced by Michael Brown Productions, Inc. in 2002. "Dust to Dust" reports on the more than 200 people who have died from asbestos exposure in Libby, Montana. The film focuses on the plights of several of these individuals and the damage done over almost thirty years while the mine was operated by W. R. Grace.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NPR" title="NPR" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">NPR</a> ran a piece on their show <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_Things_Considered" title="All Things Considered" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">All Things Considered</a> discussing the criminal charges against W. R. Grace. A U.S. attorney general alleges that the company and managers of the mine in Libby, Montana, knew about the dangers of the asbestos they were dumping into the air for over 20 years.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#cite_note-30" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[30]</a></li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">A University of Montana photojournalism master's thesis, <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.livingwithgrace.us/" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); padding-right: 13px; background: linear-gradient(transparent, transparent) 100% 50% no-repeat, url(data:image/svg+xml;base64,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) 100% 50%;">Living with Grace</a>, explored the ramifications of living with asbestosis, a disease associated with the vermiculite mine run by W.R. Grace.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">On February 19, 2008, the radio show <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Here_and_Now(Boston)" title="Here and Now (Boston)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">Here and Now</a> broadcast a story about movie <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libby,Montana(film)" title="Libby, Montana (film)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">Libby, Montana</a> which details the asbestos contamination.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R._Grace_and_Company#cite_note-31" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[31]</a></li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">On April 22, 2009, the television and radio program <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy_Now!" title="Democracy Now!" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">Democracy Now!</a> broadcast two segments on the trial of W. R. Grace and some of its employees related to the asbestos contamination in Libby, Montana.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#cite_note-32" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[32]</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#cite_note-33" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[33]</a> Democracy Now! also broadcast a follow-up interview on May 12, 2009 with activist <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gayla_Benefield&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Gayla Benefield (page does not exist)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(165, 88, 88); background: none;">Gayla Benefield</a> and<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Andrea_Peacock&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Andrea Peacock (page does not exist)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(165, 88, 88); background: none;">Andrea Peacock</a>, a Montana independent political and environmental journalist.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.R.Grace_and_Company#cite_note-34" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[34]</a> This interview focused on reactions to the not-guilty verdict in the federal trial, where W.R. Grace and three former executives were acquitted on charges of knowingly exposing workers and townspeople to asbestos, and subsequently participating in a cover-up.</li>

</ul>

===

<h2 style="font-weight: normal; margin: 0px 0px 0.6em; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0.17em; border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); line-height: 19.2px; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">Board</h2>

Accessed December 2011: <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/W.R.Grace%26_Co.#cite_note-2" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[2]</a>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/John_F._Akers" title="John F. Akers" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">John F. Akers</a></li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=H._Furlong_Baldwin&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="H. Furlong Baldwin (page does not exist)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(165, 88, 88); background: none;">H. Furlong Baldwin</a></li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Ronald_C._Cambre" title="Ronald C. Cambre" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">Ronald C. Cambre</a></li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Marye_Anne_Fox" title="Marye Anne Fox" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">Marye Anne Fox</a></li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=John_J._Murphy&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="John J. Murphy (page does not exist)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(165, 88, 88); background: none;">John J. Murphy</a></li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Christopher_J._Steffen&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Christopher J. Steffen (page does not exist)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(165, 88, 88); background: none;">Christopher J. Steffen</a></li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Mark_Tomkins&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Mark Tomkins (page does not exist)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(165, 88, 88); background: none;">Mark Tomkins</a> - chair</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Thomas_A._Vanderslice&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Thomas A. Vanderslice (page does not exist)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(165, 88, 88); background: none;">Thomas A. Vanderslice</a></li>

</ul>

<h2 style="font-weight: normal; margin: 0px 0px 0.6em; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0.17em; border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); line-height: 19.2px; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">Contact</h2>

URL: <a rel="nofollow" class="external free" href="http://www.grace.com/" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); padding-right: 13px; background: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAVElEQVR42n3PgQkAIAhEUXdqJ3dqJ3e6IoTPUSQcgj4EQ5IlUiLE0Jil3PECXhcHGBhZ8kg4hwxAu3MZeCGeyFnAXp4hqNQPnt7QL0nADpD6wHccLvnAKksq8iiaAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC) 100% 50% no-repeat;">http://www.grace.com</a>

<h2 style="font-weight: normal; margin: 0px 0px 0.6em; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0.17em; border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); line-height: 19.2px; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">Resources and articles</h2>

<h3 style="margin: 0px 0px 0.3em; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0.17em; border-bottom-style: none; line-height: 19.2px; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">Related Sourcewatch</h3>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/J._Peter_Grace" title="J. Peter Grace" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">J. Peter Grace</a> becomes president of W. R. Grace & Co. in 1945 <a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.grace.com/About/History.aspx?timeframe=1900" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); padding-right: 13px; background: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAVElEQVR42n3PgQkAIAhEUXdqJ3dqJ3e6IoTPUSQcgj4EQ5IlUiLE0Jil3PECXhcHGBhZ8kg4hwxAu3MZeCGeyFnAXp4hqNQPnt7QL0nADpD6wHccLvnAKksq8iiaAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC) 100% 50% no-repeat;">[1]</a></li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/David_A._Morse" title="David A. Morse" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">David A. Morse</a></li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/John_C._Duncan" title="John C. Duncan" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">John C. Duncan</a></li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Robert_Marston_%26_Associates" title="Robert Marston & Associates" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">Robert Marston & Associates</a></li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Sir_Ronald_Grierson" title="Sir Ronald Grierson" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">Sir Ronald Grierson</a></li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/National_Association_of_Manufacturers" title="National Association of Manufacturers" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">National Association of Manufacturers</a></li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Louis_Camilleri" title="Louis Camilleri" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">Louis Camilleri</a></li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Paul_J._Norris" title="Paul J. Norris" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;">Paul J. Norris</a> - former CEO</li>

</ul>

<h3 style="margin: 0px 0px 0.3em; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0.17em; border-bottom-style: none; line-height: 19.2px; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">References</h3>

<li id="cite_note-1" style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/W.R.Grace%26_Co.#cite_ref-1" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;"><span class="cite-accessibility-label" style=" top: -99999px; clip: rect(1px 1px 1px 1px); overflow: hidden; position: absolute !important; padding: 0px !important; border: 0px !important; height: 1px !important; width: 1px !important;">Jump up↑</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.grace.com/" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); padding-right: 13px; background: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAVElEQVR42n3PgQkAIAhEUXdqJ3dqJ3e6IoTPUSQcgj4EQ5IlUiLE0Jil3PECXhcHGBhZ8kg4hwxAu3MZeCGeyFnAXp4hqNQPnt7QL0nADpD6wHccLvnAKksq8iiaAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC) 100% 50% no-repeat;">Home</a>, W.R. Grace & Co., accessed December 15, 2011.</li>

<li id="cite_note-2" style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/W.R.Grace%26_Co.#cite_ref-2" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background: none;"><span class="cite-accessibility-label" style=" top: -99999px; clip: rect(1px 1px 1px 1px); overflow: hidden; position: absolute !important; padding: 0px !important; border: 0px !important; height: 1px !important; width: 1px !important;">Jump up↑</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://investor.grace.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=112313&p=irol-gracegov" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); padding-right: 13px; background: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAVElEQVR42n3PgQkAIAhEUXdqJ3dqJ3e6IoTPUSQcgj4EQ5IlUiLE0Jil3PECXhcHGBhZ8kg4hwxAu3MZeCGeyFnAXp4hqNQPnt7QL0nADpD6wHccLvnAKksq8iiaAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC) 100% 50% no-repeat;">Board</a>, W.R. Grace & Co., accessed December 15, 2011.</li>

</ol>

===

<a href="http://mapper.nndb.com/start/?id=207315">http://mapper.nndb.com/start/?id=207315</a>

knights of malta

<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J.Peter_Grace">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J.Peter_Grace</a>

a democrat? but co give soft $ to gop

asbestos

ties to haliburton?

<h1 id="firstHeading" class="firstHeading">J. Peter Grace</h1>

<h3 id="siteSub">From SourceWatch</h3>

<div id="jump-to-nav">Jump to: <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=J.Peter_Grace#column-one">navigation</a>, <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=J.Peter_Grace#searchInput">search</a></div>

The name <a href="http://watch.pair.com/database.html#grace" rel="nofollow" title="http://watch.pair.com/database.html#grace" class="external text">J. Peter Grace</a> (1913-1995) "is found in the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Council_for_National_Policy" title="Council for National Policy">Council for National Policy</a> (CNP) Membership Directory for 1984-85 and 1988. Grace holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Yale University (1936). Grace "started in 1936 as Assistant Secretary at <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=W.R.Grace&action=edit&redlink=1" title="W. R. Grace (page does not exist)" class="new">W. R. Grace</a>, in 1945 became President and CEO. Grace is a member of the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Newcomen_Society&action=edit&redlink=1" title="Newcomen Society (page does not exist)" class="new">Newcomen Society</a>, <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Council_on_Foreign_Relations" title="Council on Foreign Relations">Council on Foreign Relations</a> (CFR), <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Knights_of_Malta&action=edit&redlink=1" title="Knights of Malta (page does not exist)" class="new">Knights of Malta</a>: American Chapter of the Board of Founders, Knights of Malta President, 114 Avenue of the Americas [Who's Who in America (1976-77, 1992-93)]. Grace was involved in <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Project_Paperclip&action=edit&redlink=1" title="Project Paperclip (page does not exist)" class="new">Project Paperclip</a> -- a post World War II <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=CIA" title="CIA" class="mw-redirect">CIA</a> arrangement to remove classified information from dossiers so that former SS members and 900+ Nazi scientists could emigrate to the U. S. Hundreds of war criminals would find employment within government agencies and companies such as W.R. Grace chemical company whose president was J. Peter Grace."<a href="http://watch.pair.com/database.html#grace" rel="nofollow" title="http://watch.pair.com/database.html#grace" class="external autonumber">[1]</a>

"From 1982-95, J. Peter Grace was Chairman of the Advisory Committee of <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=AmeriCares" title="AmeriCares">AmeriCares</a>."

J. Peter Grace founded in 1984 together with Jack Anderson the organization <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Citizens_Against_Government_Waste" title="Citizens Against Government Waste">Citizens Against Government Waste</a>. <a href="http://www.cagw.org/site/PageServer?pagename=about_Mission_History" rel="nofollow" title="http://www.cagw.org/site/PageServer?pagename=about_Mission_History" class="external autonumber">[2]</a> This organization can be seen as a legacy of the 'President's Private Sector Survey on Cost Control', also known as the 'Grace Commission'.

Chairman of the Board of <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=AIFLD" title="AIFLD" class="mw-redirect">AIFLD</a>.

<ul>

<li>Former President, <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=W.R.Grace_and_Company" title="W. R. Grace and Company">W. R. Grace and Company</a></li>

</ul>

</div>

---

<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Merchant-Adventurer-Story-American-Silhouettes/dp/0842024441/ref=pd_sim_b_1" title="Merchant Adventurer: The Story of W.R. Grace (Latin American Silhouettes) (Hardcover)">Merchant Adventurer: The Story of W.R. Grace (La...</a> by Marquis James

<div class="productDescriptionWrapper">This splendid biography of William R. Grace (1832-1904) tells the story of a poor Irish immigrant who created an international empire. Although originally scheduled to appear in 1948 and commissioned by Grace's son, Joseph, the book, written by Pulitzer Prize- winner James, was withheld from publication by W. R. Grace executives who believed that the manuscript depicted the firm unfavorably. University of Alabama history professor Clayton discovered the galleys in a Manhattan warehouse while researching a history of the corporation. In a tale rich with details of Grace's maritime and political ventures as well as his personal life, James, who died in 1955, chronicles an extraordinarily varied career. Grace opened up commerce with South America, where he made his first fortune trading guano, then dealt in everything from lumber and sewing machines to torpedoes for the 1879 war between Peru and Chile. A reform Democrat, he twice served as mayor of New York City during the 1880s and remained active in both business and politics right up to his death.

<h3 class="productDescriptionSource">From <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/?docId=1000027801">Booklist</a></h3>

Merchant Adventurer, a rousing chronicle of the life and times of business magnate William Russell Grace, was initially scheduled for publication in 1948. Though it was commissioned by Grace's son and authored by Marquis James, the two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer of Sam Houston and Andrew Jackson, executive officers representing W. R. Grace & Company successfully lobbied against its release. The manuscript surfaced decades later during the course of research conducted by Professor Lawrence Clayton. Now Clayton presents the narrative in its original form and offers a new introduction, providing additional details about both the author and his fascinating subject.

W. R. Grace (1832-1904), an Irish immigrant, arrived in the U.S. at the age of 14. Over the next 50 years, Grace established a shipping and trading empire, amassed a huge fortune, and was twice elected to the office of mayor of New York City. Though contemporary readers may find James' spirited style a bit dated, the appeal of this rags-to-riches saga is timeless. Margaret Flanagan

</div>

----

<div class="tiny" style=" margin-bottom: 0.5em;">This review is from: Grace: W.R. Grace & Co : The Formative Years, 1850-1930 (Hardcover)</div>

WR Grace is infamous for polluting the environment in which it does business as seen in the book "A Civil Action" by Jonathan Harr and also by its ongoing asbestos litigation involving asbestos products made from its Cambridge,Mass facility. Grace is a politically astute company and Republican party supporter. In addition, it has had prominent members of the high Finance and Intelligence communities on its Board of Directors.

=

seatle PI

The history of W.R. Grace & Co.

Thursday, November 18, 1999

W.R. Grace Co. had a not-so-fragrant beginning in 1854. William R. Grace, who had fled the Irish potato famine for Peru, chartered ships to trade bat guano and bird droppings.

Twelve years later, he moved his headquarters to New York and set up a worldwide network trading fabric, fertilizer, machinery and other products.

In the middle of World War II, William Grace's grandson, Peter, took over control of the company and ran it for almost a half century, until 1993.

Although the company's focus remained on chemicals and packaging, Peter Grace diversified Grace into everything from sporting goods to tacos.

Starting in 1995, Grace divested many of its larger businesses.

In 1998, the Securities and Exchange Commission sued Grace for manipulating earnings in one of its divisions. To settle the suit, Grace set up a $1 million financial education fund.

Grace has gone through elaborate reorganization in the past decade.

Lawyers handling the asbestos suits against Grace say the shuffling was done to conceal assets and cloud the corporate lines of responsibility. Grace denies the charges and calls the moves "solid business decisions."

Although it has downsized, Grace's sales are still about $1.4 billion a year.

But like other giant companies that sold asbestos products during the heyday of the flameproof fiber, Grace is still plagued by lawsuits filed by people allegedly harmed or killed by the fibers in the insulation, garden products and other applications it sold.

More than 250,000 asbestos-related suits have been filed against Grace.

Almost all of them except the 187 involving the miners and the families from Libby are personal-injury suits dealing with the hazards of asbestos products, said Jay Hughes, Grace's top litigation counsel.

About 150,000 suits have been settled or dismissed. An estimated 102,000 cases remain, he said.

A spotlight was thrown on one of Grace's darkest moments when the movie "A Civil Action" was released in January.

John Travolta and Robert Duvall dramatized the book of the same name written by Jonathan Harr. The book told the story of families living in the old New England mill town of Woburn on the outskirts of Boston.

Five Woburn children and one adult died of acute lymphocytic leukemia from exposure to chemicals in their drinking water. Others were sickened. Grace and another company were found by the Environmental Protection Agency to be responsible for dumping the toxic chemicals that poisoned two of Woburn's wells.

Grace paid $8 million to eight families in return for the withdrawal of lawsuits they had filed.

Later, Grace was indicted by the Department of Justice on two counts of lying to the EPA in 1982 about the amount of hazardous chemicals it used at its Woburn plant. In 1988, Grace pled guilty to one count and was fined the maximum -- $10,000. Today, the penalty for that charge is $500,000.

===

In the town of Libby, Montana, the W. R. Grace Company operated

a vermiculite mine that spewed 5,000 pounds of highly toxic asbestos

dust into the air every day, according to the company’s own tests.

The connection between asbestos and fatal lung disease had been

known since the 1920s, but efforts by the company to protect its employees

from exposure were minimal at best. Internal reports documenting

the problem were concealed, and the company told workers that the

type of asbestos contained in the mine’s dust was a non-hazardous variety.

By the 1960s, the evidence had become impossible to ignore: numerous

workers in Libby were dying slow, excruciating deaths caused

by debilitating lung ailments including fatal asbestosis (a thickening and

hardening of the lung tissue), mesothelioma (cancer of the lung’s lining),

and lung cancer (cancer of the lung itself). An x-ray survey in

1969 showed that almost half of the people who had worked at the mine

for 11 to 20 years had lung disease; among workers with 21 to 25 years

tenure, the rate was 92 percent. In 1999, a survey by the Seattle Post-

Intelligencer confirmed 192 deaths, with an additional 375 people diagnosed

with fatal lung disease.

At the root of the appalling conditions in Libby and elsewhere was

the political power of the mining industry. A former Bureau of Mines

inspector told the Post-Intelligencer: “You would have to have bodies

stacked like cordwood and the public screaming for someone’s head

before we could get the government’s lawyers to do anything.”

In the 1970s, a window opened briefly, as Anaconda turned its attention

to more lucrative mining opportunities in Chile and other countries.

With the grip of the company loosened, a coalition of ranchers,

184  environmentalists, labor unions, and others succeeded in enacting a new

state constitution as well as a series of stronger environmental laws. In

1996, the coalition, assisted by campaign-finance reformers from other

states, undertook the ambitious project of excluding corporate money

from citizen ballot initiatives.

</div>