St Loius Landfill Fire Moving Towards West Lake Nuclear Waste Site

Originally posted by rickymouse
reply to post by sad_eyed_lady

 

I would say that they have mistakedly overlapped the sites. They didn't keep that good records years ago and mistakes do happen when people profit from it.

The radioactive waste is illegally in the Mississippi river bed. I think having a landfill in a major river bed was not a good idea at all as well.

reply to post by qmantoo
would it not be simple to bore into the land fill and inject water , they could also fit a chimney in the centre and use a water air scrubber to remove the pollutants from the escaping air .

In the report I saw, they did not map the extent of the underground fire as the IR images they did in the flyover-and-map mission was not showing that.

It is inconceivable that they cannot get that information if they wanted to with the technology they have now. If they can detect underground tunnels going from North Korea to the coast or to South Korea, then they will be able to detect the heat signature of this underground fire.

I reckon what they need to do is open the whole thing up starting from a point near the radioactive landfill site and then just pour loads of water on it. That would be the mature responsible thing to do and it will be the only way for this to be resolved.

As it goes, this is a ticking time bomb without any end in sight. It will be FAR worse when the fire gets to the radioactive landfill site because the fumes will be radioactive then and no-one will be able to get near to it.

No-one seems to have the guts to just address the real issue and deal with it BEFORE it hits the radioactivity.

Opening the existing landfill will be very bad, but if the fire gets to the radioactive landfill site, the radioactivity will be far far far worse for a lot more people.

Brockovich team vows quick action on landfill issues
www.stltoday.com...

The legal team working with environmental activist Erin Brockovich vowed quick action on behalf of north St. Louis County residents concerned about exposure to gases being emitted from a subsurface fire at the Bridgeton Landfill and the proximity to tons of radioactive waste.

Yay!!!

Channel 11 did a story on this earlier today. The need for addressing the problem of both sites was addressed. Mention of concerns that radioactive waste is in the ground water is the first time I have heard a new station acknowledge this aspect of the problem.

Yes, it is gradually getting to become big news. Some more articles and notice of a meeting on Monday.

Erin Brockovich's environmentalists address Bridgeton landfill

A foul stench and concerns about safety near the Bridgeton landfill have garnered national attention, including a visit from a lawyer and environmental investigator with the Erin Brockovich group. They answered questions on Saturday concerning the impact of the Bridgeton landfill on the area.
Residents, property owners, business owners and any other concerned community members can attend the meeting at the International Union of Operating Engineers Saturday from 11-12:30 p.m.
According to Brockovich's website, those attending the meeting would receive “straightforward answers.”

Second town hall meeting to take place about Bridgeton landfill Monday

A Missouri state representative will hold an informational meeting for the public concerning the Bridgeton landfill Monday. This meeting comes on the heels of a visit from environmentalists with Erin Brockovich Saturday.

St. Charles state representative Bill Otto will host the meeting Monday night.

He will discuss the fire burning underground, radioactive waste and the lawsuit filed by Mo. Attorney General Chris Koster.

Saturday, high profile attorney, Tom Girardi with Erin Brockovich, conducted the meeting addressing environment concerns with Bridgeton residents.

my highlighting

North County residents demand Massive Environmental Clean-Up

North St. Louis County residents worried about nuclear waste in a Bridgeton landfill want action from the EPA. Residents met Saturday with a Los Angeles attorney who works with environmental activist Erin Brockovich to talk about options.

Many say it is time for the EPA to turn the property over to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to remove the contaminants to a secure site in an unpopulated area. Fill used in the West Lake Landfill on St. Charles Rock Road contains some nuclear material. Similar material stored near the airport contaminated Coldwater Creek.

Brockovich team discusses West Lake Landfill

Concerned residents living near the West Lake landfill in Bridgeton got a visit Saturday from the legal team of famed environmentalist Erin Brockovich.

The super-fund site is home to decades-old nuclear waste left over from the Manhattan Project. However, just last month, the Environmental Protection Agency released a report saying radiation levels at the landfill are not an immediate threat to the public.
But not everyone agrees.

People living nearby lobbied for Brockovich to bring more attention to the issue. She sent Tom Girardi. He's an attorney who handles toxic cases all over the country.

He will be representing about 100 concerned Bridgeton residents and working with the lawyers representing others.

Following on from the meeting this week, it appears that it was a farse and many people walked out in disgust.

If you want a list of chemicals which are being detected, download the lab report of the air survey taken 18 Mar 13


Radioactive Waste Concerns Citizens In Bridgeton 17Jun13

On Monday night, Representative Bill Otto held a meeting at Pattonville High School to share these concerns with the public.
The EPA has been using this decades-old document to show that the landfill doesn’t pose an immediate threat. However, there is a fire burning at the adjacent Bridgeton landfill that’s only 1,000 feet from this dangerous waste. And with the errors just discovered, Otto and others say it’s a scary situation.

“It’s a lot worse than I think they’re saying,” explains Otto.
First, a decimal point mistake means there is actually 100 times more uranium in the landfill than originally calculated. Additionally, a Washington University scientist found that the landfill could contain a particular type of radioactive waste, not originally documented, that has the capacity to contaminate groundwater.
Lastly, the clean soil used to dilute the toxic waste was taken from the nearby Latty Avenue nuclear site, meaning that soil is probably far from being clean.

Next Tuesday at 6:30pm, the EPA will hold a public meeting, also at Pattonville High School, to discuss the nuclear waste issue.

Public Hearing Held For Burning Bridgeton Landfill 18jun13

The hearing was held through a web conference. About 200 people packed into the cafeteria of Pattonville High School, watching a projector and submitting questions through a moderator.
On the other end were representatives from the Department of Natural Resources, an engineer, and a firefighter specializing in landfill fires. Many people walked out before it was over.

“What they’re here to do is get some answers and they didn’t get any. That’s why they’re leaving,” another man said. “They never actually talked to the public. They talk at the public.”
The conference was arranged by local Missouri Rep. Bill Otto in an effort to allow citizens to ask questions about the landfill. The Environmental Protection Agency will host a meeting in Bridgeton next week to discuss the results of a radiological survey at the landfill.

Todd Thalhamer does not appear to say how this gas well interceptor will stop the fire. Basically - what has this got to do with stopping the fire reaching the nuclear waste site?
It appears that the gas interceptor well systems is drilled to a depth of between 50-60 feet which may not be enough to stop the fire going around or under it.
As I understand it, this does not stop the fire but merely removes the toxic gases and liquids in those gases. See the plan for this system and the site plan included here


Expert says Bridgeton Landfill fire is contained away from radioactive waste

Todd Thalhamer, an engineer who has worked with the state for more than a year to evaluate the scope of the fire, estimates the smoldering mass of waste hasn’t advanced beyond two lines of gas wells constructed by the landfill’s owner, Republic Services Inc., this year to stop the fire’s advance.
“The gas interceptor well system appears to be holding,” Thalhamer told a crowd of about 250 people crammed into Pattonville High School cafeteria for an update on the landfill fire.
At the same time, Thalhamer cautioned that there’s not enough data to provide assurances that the system will continue to hold. He also recommended construction of a vertical barrier between the northern and southern halves of the landfill to keep the smoldering from moving further north.
Otto, however, joined the chorus of local residents and environmental activists who are calling on the Environmental Protection Agency to remove radioactive material at West Lake.He said inconsistencies in federal documents going back to the mid-1970s — and in one case a misplaced decimal point — raise questions about what’s actually buried at West Lake.
The EPA will hold a public meeting on June 25 to discuss results of an aerial radiological survey of the site and surrounding area conducted earlier this year.

Engineer: Gas well system is containing Bridgeton landfill situation

Engineers Report June 2013 (Engineer referred to above)

Bridgeton Sanitary Landfill Facility Information
Bridgeton Landfill website by the Dept of Natural Resources

Information page

weekly reports and analysis

Concerned citizens are encouraged to attend the meeting with the EPA scheduled for 6:30 p.m. June 25 at Pattonville High School, 2497 Creve Coeur Mill Road, Maryland Heights.

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Nuns on the Bus for West Lake Landfill 17 June 13

In an expression of concern for their neighbors and for the land, the Franciscan Sisters of Mary visited the Bridgeton Sanitary Landfill and the adjoining West Lake Landfill to call attention to the issues and to pray for healing for the area and its inhabitants.

The president of the Franciscan Sisters of Mary, Sr. Rose Mary Dowling, said, "We are here because we care about the earth and about our neighbors, who depend on having a healthy environment to raise their children. We join them in voicing concern about the risk posed by these landfills in our community."

It seems this thread has died. Well, we will see what happens when fire meets radioactive landfill, maybe there will be more threads then. :-)