BRIDGETON, Mo. (KMOX) - Several months after the actual digging was supposed to start at the West Lake Landfill, the EPA now says it's "not able to project at this time" when it will start throwing dirt.
An EPA spokesman says the cleanup plan announced in 2018 has not changed, they still plan to remove up to 70% of the nuclear waste at the site. But it appears the soil sampling is taking longer than expected, as they find where the nuclear waste is buried, and plan how to remove it.
EPA spokesman Ben Washburn says they still plan to dig up and remove a large portion of the radioactive waste and haul it away. But Washburn says he "doesn't have anything he can share" about when it will get started.
You can read the full statement at the bottom of this post.
The West Lake moms group – Just Moms – is growing impatient with the pace of clean up. One of the group's leaders, Dawn Chapman, says people in the community have health problems they think are related to the site, and they're tired of waiting for actual digging to get started.
"I'm not angry that they're seeking answers," explains Chapman. She says the EPA Superfund cleanup first announced in 2018 was supposed to have started with actual digging last fall, but they're still testing ground samples. "What I am angry about, they need to be cleaning up the surface areas right now. And then they can continue to investigate the site. They can do both."
Related
FULL STATEMENT
West Lake Landfill OU-1 Update
EPA has an agreement in place with Bridgeton Landfill, LLC, Cotter
Corporation (N.S.L.) and the United States Department of Energy to
perform the Remedial Design currently under way at the West Lake
Landfill site, Operable Unit 1 (OU-1) to conduct a Remedial Design.
The design work at West Lake Landfill is primarily focused on
determining where and how to excavate radiologically impacted material
(RIM), where will it go once excavated and how will it get there, and
lastly how to construct the engineered cover system to safely contain
the radiologically impacted material (RIM) that will remain on-site.
The Design Investigation field work is being conducted to identify the
lateral and vertical extent of RIM so that precise excavation plans
can be developed. A primary objective is to precisely define areas
requiring excavation so that excavations can be performed as quickly
as possible in order to maximize safety for onsite workers and the
local community, as well as minimize odors that may be associated with
open excavations. Once the data is received from this field
investigation EPA will provide updates to the community regarding the
projected completion date for the Remedial Design phase. As the design
phase progresses, EPA will make every effort to reach an enforceable
agreement with the potentially responsible parties (PRPs) to perform
the cleanup work.
In the meantime, EPA reviews site data as it becomes available and
with the site use restrictions and the health and safety measures in
place for site workers, current risks to on-site workers and the
surrounding community are below levels of concern. EPA works to keep
the community up to date regarding the progress of the site via email
updates, social media posts, and meetings with the local Community
Advisory Group or their Technical Committee. Regular updates are being
provided on the EPA Region 7 Facebook page regarding the field work
completed each week. The updates include information on who was
conducting field oversight of the work for that week, photos of the
work and figures illustrating drilling locations which have been
completed and those in the planning stages. In addition to social
media, all site related documents are posted on the West Lake Landfill
Site Profile Page for the public to access. If you would like to
receive the email newsletter updates, please email Ben Washburn at
Washburn.ben@epa.govWashburn.ben@epa.gov>.
West Lake Landfill OU-3 Update
Groundwater at the Site is being investigated under Operable Unit 3
(OU-3) and is in the Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study (RI/FS)
phase. The RI/FS is being performed by Bridgeton Landfill, LLC, Cotter
Corporation (N.S.L.) and the United States Department of Energy under
an enforceable agreement subject to EPA oversight. Field work to
support the RI/FS began in November 2020 and activities include a
drilling program to study the subsurface geology; installation of
groundwater monitoring wells; quarterly groundwater sampling for a
minimum of two years once all wells have been installed; groundwater
modeling that will be used to predict groundwater and contaminant
movement in the future; and development of human health and ecological
risk assessments to evaluate any potential risks due to contaminated
groundwater.
A comprehensive groundwater monitoring well network is currently being
established so that all aspects of groundwater can be thoroughly
evaluated. Construction of new groundwater monitoring wells began in
January 2021 with locations on landfill property and will continue
with installation of off-site monitoring wells with completion
expected in August 2022. To date, 30 new groundwater monitoring wells
have been installed, some of which are capable of sampling up to 5
different depths. Groundwater samples are collected on a quarterly
basis from existing wells, and new wells are added into the sampling
program once they are constructed and ready to sample.
© 2021 KMOX (Audacy). All rights reserved
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Follow KMOX
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram