John Wardell, head of the federal Environmental Protection Agency’s Montana office, has passed away after a mountain climbing accident near the town of Libby. He had worked for the EPA for 33 years.

For the last 25 years, he had served as the director of the Montana office, where he presided over many large-scale environmental cleanups throughout the state. Perhaps no other case received the level of media coverage as the asbestos cleanup in Libby.

Once home to a mine run by W.R. Grace, hundreds of Libby residents have now died from asbestos-related diseases like mesothelioma or asbestosis, and many more have also fallen ill. The federal trial against W.R. Grace garnered a great deal of ongoing media coverage until it ended recently. Some federal money has been provided to help clean up the area and to provide for those who have fallen ill, but available funds to cover resident’s medical costs are running out, leaving the sick with few options and high medical bills.

Wardell is survived by wife Sandy and a son, Christopher, age 28, who lives in Denver, Colorado. He was an experienced climber and a well-known face in Libby.

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