Oregon Industrial Asbestos Exposure Sites

Oregon’s industrial base — anchored by World War II shipbuilding, paper and pulp manufacturing, aluminum smelting, and hydroelectric power generation — created sustained occupational asbestos exposure for generations of workers. Asbestos-containing insulation, gaskets, refractory materials, and friction products were standard at virtually every major Oregon facility through the 1980s.

Oregon’s Swan Island and Vancouver (Washington) shipyards were among the most heavily asbestos-contaminated industrial sites in World War II-era America, employing tens of thousands of workers in cramped, asbestos-filled ship compartments.

Key Oregon Industrial Regions

  • Portland / Swan Island — Kaiser’s Swan Island Shipyard, Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation (Permanente Metals), Zidell Marine shipbreaking
  • Willamette Valley corridor — Georgia-Pacific paper mills, Weyerhaeuser operations, PacifiCorp generating stations, Portland General Electric facilities
  • Columbia River corridor — Bonneville Dam construction and maintenance, aluminum smelters (Reynolds Metals, Harvey Aluminum)
  • Coos Bay / South Coast — Georgia-Pacific lumber and paper operations, Port of Coos Bay facilities

Documented jobsite pages will appear here as they are published.