FLORISSANT 鈥 Radioactive waste up to 22 times the expected level was found in a kindergarten play area at an elementary school in Florissant, according to a recently released report.
Boston Chemical Data Corp. examined soil, dust and plants at Jana Elementary School in the Hazelwood School District.
The school, off Patterson Road, sits in the flood plain of Coldwater Creek, which was contaminated by waste from nuclear bombs manufactured during World War II.
Samples taken on Aug. 15 from Jana鈥檚 library, kitchen, HVAC system, classrooms, fields and playgrounds found 鈥渇ar in excess of the natural background鈥 of radioactive isotope lead-210, polonium, radium and other toxins, .
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When Ashley Bernaugh, president of the Jana parent-teacher association, read the report, it confirmed her worst fears.
鈥淚 was heartbroken,鈥 said Bernaugh, who has a son at the school. 鈥淚t sounds so clich茅, but it takes your breath from you.鈥
The Hazelwood School Board will discuss the report in a closed session Tuesday, said board president Betsy Rachel. During the public portion of the meeting, she said, 鈥淚 am fully expecting a lot of comments on it.鈥
The district that said the board would consult with attorneys and experts 鈥渢o determine next steps.鈥
鈥淪afety is absolutely our top priority for our staff and students,鈥 Rachel said Saturday.
Water flows in Coldwater Creek on Thursday, Dec. 9, 2021.聽
Previous testing by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which started in 2018, also revealed contamination, but not to the extent found in the Boston Chemical report. No samples from the Army Corps鈥 tests came within 300 feet of the school building; none were taken from inside the school.
Karen Nickel, co-founder of the environmental activist group , met last week with Phil Moser, who manages the Corps鈥 cleanup of former nuclear sites, and sent him the new report Friday, she said.
The agency needs 鈥減robable cause鈥 to conduct testing beyond their original parameters, Nickel said, which should be covered by the most recent findings.
鈥淭here is no safe level of bomb waste for children,鈥 she said.
Christen Commuso of the Missouri Coalition for the Environment obtained the results of the Army Corps鈥 study in the spring through a Freedom of Information Act request. She presented the information to the Hazelwood School Board in June.
鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 want my child in this school,鈥 she said. 鈥淭he effect of these toxins is cumulative.鈥
In July, Bernaugh and other parents approached the school board to ask for more testing and were refused, she said. But before school resumed in August, families received a letter that another study would be conducted.
The Boston Chemical report doesn鈥檛 say who funded the company鈥檚 study.
Bernaugh said she feels vindicated that she has the data to back up what she and other Jana parents have long suspected.
鈥淭his has been in our community for over 80 years,鈥 she said. 鈥淲e expect the school board to make the agencies responsible for this to come in and clean it up.鈥
Coldwater Creek's issues with radioactive soil begin with work done near downtown 最新杏吧原创 for the Manhattan Project during World War II. We summarize the concerns about the creek and how radioactive material contaminated it.
