The study, which was published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Environmental Radioactivity, claims that 48 percent of its 287 soil and sediment samples contained lead-210 concentrations above Department of Energy limits for residential farming. The limits were set at a uranium plant in Emerald, Ohio, which handles the same concentrated Manhattan Project-era wastes found at West Lake.
“Offsite migration of radiological contaminants from Manhattan Project-era uranium processing wastes has occurred in this populated area,” says the study, which was authored by the Boston Chemical Corp. and the Institute for Policy Studies. “Detection of unsupported (lead-210) beyond expected atmospheric deposition rates is examined as a possible indicator of excessive radon emissions from buried uranium and radium-containing wastes.”
Located in the St. Louis suburb of Bridgeton, the West Lake Landfill has been a contentious topic, with environmentalists criticizing the Environmental Protection Agency’s handling of the site. Last week the EPA announced that it is building an isolation barrier at West Lake to ensure that an underground fire at the adjacent Bridgeton Landfill doesn’t come into contact with nuclear waste material. Also last week, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources announced that it is testing storm-water runoff for contamination at the Bridgeton Landfill after it was notified of surface water leaving the site.
“Given the importance of radon releases from soils to air as a vector for public exposure to radioactivity, increasing the density and frequency of radon measurements around the West Lake Landfill should be an important priority,” the study states. “If the West Lake Landfill fire were to intrude upon areas with buried uranium-processing wastes, radon emissions may increase further.”