BRIDGETON, Mo. – The EPA says they are one step closer to cleaning up nuclear contamination at the West Lake Landfill. Officials with the EPA held a meeting Thursday to answer questions from the community about the cleanup.
“It is a lot to take in, and you’ve got people that just want to know the bottom line: when are you going to put a shovel in the ground?” Karen Nickel with Just Moms STL said.
The EPA didn’t have an answer Thursday about when the cleanup will happen but did explain that they are a step closer.
“The EPA is the one that is currently reviewing the remedial design. So they’re currently reviewing the 90 percent design. Then the next major is the 100 percent design,” Jessica Evans, EPA community involvement coordinator, said.
The EPA outlined the six changes made to the cleanup strategy, including expanding the excavation area by 40 acres, increasing the estimated cost by over $160 million, and implementing new safety measures like direct loading of radiologically impacted materials (RIM) to reduce worker exposure. One citizen is battling cancer due to radiation exposure.
“I see a lot of foot dragging. You know, but I understand the process; it has to be looked at completely because it is such a toxic site,” Coldwater Creek District 1 resident Laura Baker said.
The cleanup includes excavation of the nuclear waste, off-site disposal, and a cover. Evans said the EPA site teams want to be as thorough as possible, but they understand the public’s frustration.
“I think the agency is very proud of the hard work they’ve done in the last six years trying to characterize this site. They have done a lot of hard work; that is very valid. But then you’re going to see the community on this side saying, ‘Why didn’t you do this 30 years ago? You could have protected so and so that I lost,'” Dawn Chapman added.
Bob Jurgens, who is responsible for all sites in Region 7 for the EPA, was in attendance at the meeting.
“We know this is a long process. We hear you. There are times, I’m sure, my staff say, ‘What can we do to speed things up?’ Its really important we get this right,” he said.
The meeting in Bridgton was a follow-up to another design meeting held back in May 2023. The EPA announced their record of decision on the cleanup back in 2018. In the last six years, they’ve been able to collect more data.
“The cleanup plan is not going to change, just implementation based on the investigation results,” Evans said.
Nickel and Chapman trust the EPA’s design but stick with their thoughts that remediation should have happened years ago.
“I think we’re going to look at a diagram tonight that shows us a very, very sick site that’s been sitting in our community for half a century. That’s hurt a lot of people,” Chapman said.
Another attendee, Deborah Volz, has the same thoughts as Nickel and Chapman.
“I’ve been coming to these meetings close to ten years, and it’s the same old song and dance like every time. So, I don’t understand really why we’re not getting anywhere,” she said.
