About Blount Street Station | Madison
Blount Street Station: Coal-Fired Power Generation
Blount Street Station, operated by Madison Gas & Electric Co. (MG&E), is one of Wisconsin’s historically significant municipal electricity generating facilities. Located on Blount Street in Madison, the station supplied electricity and steam to homes, businesses, and public institutions throughout Dane County for much of the twentieth century.
The facility was allegedly constructed and substantially expanded during the period of approximately 1920 to 1980 — decades when asbestos-containing materials were standard specification throughout the power generation industry nationwide.
Why Coal-Fired Stations Relied on Asbestos-Containing Materials
Steam-powered electricity generation operates under conditions that destroy ordinary materials:
- Temperatures exceeding 1,000°F
- Pressures measured in hundreds of pounds per square inch
- Continuous thermal cycling that expands and contracts metal and insulation systems daily
- Caustic and corrosive chemical environments
Asbestos-containing materials offered what engineers at the time considered unmatched advantages:
- Heat resistance — tolerates extreme sustained temperatures
- Fire protection — essential in coal dust environments where ignition risk is constant
- Mechanical durability — withstands years of repeated maintenance cycles
- Cost — inexpensive and abundantly available from domestic manufacturers
The result: virtually every major component at Blount Street Station — boilers, turbines, steam lines, condensers, and piping systems — may have incorporated asbestos-containing materials manufactured by, ceiling tile, and
Regional Context: The Great Lakes industrial corridor
Blount Street Station’s exposure history did not exist in isolation. Union tradespeople — dispatched through Heat and Frost Insulators Local 1, UA Local 75, and Boilermakers Local 107 — frequently worked at multiple generating stations across Wisconsin, Illinois, and Wisconsin during the same careers.
Comparable Midwestern coal-fired stations in the Great Lakes industrial corridor include:
- comparable regional power stations — the region
- comparable regional power stations — the region
- comparable regional power stations — the region
- comparable regional power stations — Illinois
- Metro East facilities in Madison County and St. Clair County, Illinois
These facilities reportedly underwent extensive NESHAP remediation and asbestos abatement documented in public EPA records — reflecting the same widespread ACM use that characterized Blount Street Station.
Workers who spent portions of their careers at Blount Street Station and other portions at Wisconsin or Illinois facilities may have legal rights in multiple jurisdictions. An experienced Wisconsin asbestos attorney handling multi-state claims can identify and pursue every applicable venue.
General Equipment at Blount Street Station | Madison
The equipment below represents the systems and infrastructure documented or typically present at this facility during the era when asbestos-containing materials were specified in industrial construction. This is general facility-equipment reference — not a legal attribution of any specific product, manufacturer, or exposure event to this facility. Material-category and manufacturer information is addressed in the AsbestosIndex Product Crosswalk linked under the records table below.
Documented Asbestos Evidence — Wisconsin
The records below are verified, state-documented asbestos removals at this facility. Each entry represents a regulated abatement project where the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (Wisconsin DNR) was notified under federal NESHAP rules, the work was logged, and the asbestos-containing material was confirmed and removed under regulated conditions. These are not allegations or estimates — they are paper records tying documented asbestos-containing material to this specific site.
No Wisconsin DNR NESHAP abatement notifications have been identified for this facility in current public records. Per the framing above, absence of state-agency documentation should not be read as absence of asbestos — only as absence of a formal, regulated abatement event meeting reporting thresholds. Workers who recall encountering pipe insulation, block insulation, gaskets, or other asbestos-era construction materials at this facility may still have viable claims regardless of whether a state record exists.
Material Categories in Documented Records
The materials documented above (and similar asbestos-containing materials commonly encountered in records of this type) appear in the AsbestosIndex catalog with historical manufacturer and trust-fund information. Click a category to view manufacturers historically associated with that material:
Who May Have Been Exposed at Blount Street Station | Madison
Workers in the following trades who were employed at Blount Street Station or comparable facilities in the Great Lakes industrial corridor may have been exposed to asbestos-containing materials produced by , gaskets and packing.
Insulators (Heat and Frost Insulators) — Highest Risk
Insulators associated with Heat and Frost Insulators Local 1 carry the highest documented occupational asbestos exposure risk of any trade in the power generation industry:
- Direct handling of asbestos pipe covering, block insulation, and spray-applied insulation products
- Cutting and fitting asbestos-containing materials to pipes and equipment — generating intense, sustained fiber release
- Removal and replacement during maintenance and renovation — disturbing decades of accumulated asbestos dust in enclosed spaces
- No meaningful respiratory protection during much of the twentieth century — federal exposure standards did not emerge until the 1970s, and enforcement lagged for years after
An insulator who spent 20 to 30 years working at Blount Street Station and comparable generating stations in neighboring states may have accumulated cumulative asbestos exposures that, on an individual basis, are consistent with the development of mesothelioma decades after the last day of work.
Pipefitters (UA Local 75) — High Risk
Pipefitters from UA Local 75 faced asbestos exposure through every phase of plant operation:
- Pipe installation and repair requiring direct contact with asbes
Generating Unit Equipment — Public Registry
The following generating units are documented in the North American Electric Generating Plants database for this facility. This database is maintained by UDI/S&P Global and draws on federal EIA filings and state regulatory records.
| Unit | Year | Capacity | Fuel | Boiler Type | Boiler/Steam Sys Mfr | Turbine Mfr | Generator Mfr | Steam Params | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blount Street 2 | 1923 | 5 MW | Gas | Front | Retired 1987 | ||||
| Blount Street 1 | 1925 | 12.5 MW | Gas | Front | Bw | Wh | Wh | 225 PSI / 497°F | Operating |
| Blount Street 4 | 1938 | 20 MW | Coal | Front | Fw | Ac | Ac | 825 PSI / 825°F | Operating |
| Blount Street 5 | 1948 | 25 MW | Coal | Front | Bw | Wh | Wh | 825 PSI / 825°F | Operating |
| Blount Street 3 | 1953 | 33 MW | Coal | Front | Bw | Ac | Ac | 825 PSI / 825°F | Operating |
| Blount Street 6 | 1957 | 44 MW | Coal | Front | Bw | Ac | Ac | 1250 PSI / 950°F | Operating |
| Blount Street 7 | 1961 | 44 MW | Coal | Front | Bw | Ac | Ac | 1250 PSI / 950°F | Operating |
Source: UDI/S&P Global North American Electric Generating Plants database (NAMERICA 2025). Public reference data.
Wisconsin — Filing Deadline & Next Steps
Wisconsin law gives mesothelioma and asbestos-disease claimants 3 years from the date of medical diagnosis to file a personal-injury lawsuit (Wis. Stat. § 893.54). For wrongful-death claims after an asbestos-related death, the filing window is 3 years from the date of death (Wis. Stat. § 893.54). The two deadlines run on separate tracks — preserving one does not extend the other.
The personal-injury clock runs from diagnosis, not from exposure. Mesothelioma latency is typically 20 to 50 years, so workers exposed in the 1950s–1980s are being diagnosed today.
Practical first steps
- Document what you remember. Pay stubs, W-2s, union cards, photographs, coworker names, and dates of employment. The WorkChain widget on this page can save a copy you can email yourself.
- Preserve medical records. Pathology reports, biopsy results, imaging, and pulmonary-function tests are central to both civil claims and trust-fund filings.
- Identify household members. Spouses who laundered work clothing and children of plant workers are eligible for secondary-exposure claims when diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease.
- Speak with an asbestos attorney with Wisconsin experience. The first conversation is free and confidential. Asbestos trust-fund claims and civil claims run on different tracks — both can be pursued in parallel.
Asbestos-Related Diseases — Wisconsin
Asbestos fiber exposure can cause several specific diseases that typically appear decades after the original exposure. The latency period — the gap between exposure and diagnosis — usually runs 20 to 50 years. That's why workers exposed in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s are receiving diagnoses today.
Mesothelioma
A rare, aggressive cancer that affects the lining of the lungs (pleural mesothelioma), abdomen (peritoneal), or heart (pericardial). Mesothelioma is almost exclusively caused by asbestos exposure, which is why a mesothelioma diagnosis often points directly to historical workplace exposure. Average latency from first exposure to diagnosis is 30-50 years.
Asbestosis
A chronic, non-cancerous scarring of lung tissue caused by inhaled asbestos fibers. Asbestosis causes progressive shortness of breath, persistent cough, and reduced lung function. It does not improve with treatment, and it is a recognized basis for a claim under most trust schedules and civil claims.
Lung Cancer
Asbestos exposure significantly increases the risk of lung cancer, particularly when combined with a history of smoking. Asbestos-related lung cancer is compensable under the same trust schedules and civil claim avenues as mesothelioma.
Other Recognized Diseases
Pleural plaques, pleural thickening, laryngeal cancer, ovarian cancer, and certain gastrointestinal cancers are also recognized as asbestos-related under various trust schedules and case-law authorities, though eligibility and proof requirements vary by claim type.
If you have any of these diagnoses and you worked at this facility, lived with someone who did, or were exposed in any documented capacity, you may have a claim worth pursuing. Speak with an attorney before assuming you don't qualify.
Data Sources — Wisconsin
Information about facility equipment, industrial materials, and occupational records referenced on this page is drawn from publicly available sources where applicable, including:
- EPA ECHO Facility Compliance Database — enforcement and compliance records for industrial facilities
- OSHA Establishment Search — federal workplace inspection history
- EIA Form 860 Plant Data — power-plant equipment and ownership records (where applicable)
- Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources NESHAP asbestos abatement notification records
- Published asbestos trial and trust fund records (publicly filed court documents)
- AsbestosIndex Product & Manufacturer Crosswalk — historical asbestos-containing product schedules linked to manufacturers
If specific equipment or product claims in this article are sourced from a non-public database, the source is identified parenthetically within the text above.