Asbestos in Smithsonian Poses No Threat, Secretary Tells Congress

Smithsonian Secretary G. Wayne Clough told a Congressional committee yesterday that there was no indication any of the institution’s museums posed a public asbestos risk, The Washington Post reports.

“We have never had any indication of unacceptable levels” of the substance, Mr. Clough said at the hearing, which was called after the newspaper reported last month on a National Air and Space Museum employee who had been diagnosed with an asbestos-related lung disease. Mr. Clough said all current and former Smithsonian employees and volunteers will be offered free health screenings.

Asbestos was also discovered at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History during renovations in 2006 and 2007, the Post reports.

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