Testing shows possible radiological contamination near creek

FLORISSANT, Mo. -- Testing by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has found possible radiological contamination at seven more properties near Coldwater Creek in north St. Louis County, further adding to concerns remnants of the nation's early nuclear-weapons program are causing health problems for some who lived near the waterway.

The latest testing found possible contamination on three residential and four commercial properties near the creek, which follows the corps' findings this summer of contamination on other nearby residential properties, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.

Nuclear processing waste that was stored at sites near Lambert-St. Louis International Airport during the early decades of the Cold War leached into Coldwater Creek, which runs through suburbs such as Hazelwood and Florissant and eventually empties into the Mississippi River.

Separate from the corps' investigation, the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry is beginning a study of a potential link between the creek's contamination and high numbers of cancer diagnoses. Many who grew up along Coldwater Creek believe the high numbers are a result of childhood exposure.

Bruce Munholand is the program manager for the corps' nuclear cleanup program known as the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program, or FUSRAP. He said the latest contamination shouldn't pose a danger because it is buried 6 inches to 5 feet below the surface and is closer to the bank of Coldwater Creek, away from high-trafficked areas.

"We have not found any levels in these areas that we would consider to be a danger," he said Monday.

Still, the corps is advising property owners not to disturb the soil near the contaminated areas. The corps plans to clean it up but may not get to the private properties until late summer because of a cleanup in the works in two other areas.

Munholand is hopeful the cleanup of a 3.5-mile stretch of creek that includes the newly found contamination can be finished by the end of next year, so the next phase of testing can begin along another section. It could be a decade before the entire job is done.

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