Residents want lead mine settlement spent in communities

PARK HILLS, Mo. -- Some residents in Southeast Missouri want money from a lead mining settlement spent in communities affected by contamination, not on a new state park.

Residents panned a plan to buy 2,500 acres for the Oregon County park during a special meeting Tuesday, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. The proposal would use part of a $40 million settlement with mining company Asarco.

The Missouri Department of Natural Resources and two federal agencies, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Forest Service, would decide how to spend the settlement after getting public input. Funds can be used to clean up contamination and offset damage by protecting wilderness elsewhere.

There's also $8.5 million from other settlements with lead miners in the area. About $2.5 million has been spent so far.

Department of Natural Resources director Sara Parker Pauley said more money would be spent in areas tainted by lead. She said agencies plan to communicate more with communities about project ideas.

The agencies are waiting in some areas for the Environmental Protection Agency to finish the first phase of cleanups, Parker Pauley said. She hopes to see an EPA plan by 2017 or 2018 so the agencies can come up with complementary projects.

"We are absolutely committed to making sure that half of the funds go to site restoration," she said.

Parker Pauley said buying parkland and wilderness is a good way to start spending funds in the meantime.

State Rep. Linda Black, R-Desloge, said there have been talks about forming a legislative committee to look into how the state is spending Asarco settlement money. She helped organized the special meeting Tuesday.

"I would like to see the settlement money spent in the impacted areas," Black said.

The state has gotten written comments in support of buying land for the Oregon County state park plan, Parker Pauley said. She said officials recognize residents' frustrations.

"This is tough to balance all of these interests," she said. "We recognize we're not going to get agreement from everyone."

Information from: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, http://www.stltoday.com