Sep 22, 2006 11:41 am US/Central
Arsenic Contamination In South Mpls. Spreading
Minneapolis (AP) ―
The number of yards in south Minneapolis contaminated with arsenic from a long-closed pesticide plant continues to grow, and the EPA is considering designating the area a Superfund site.
After testing soil from 3,000 residential properties this spring, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency now says arsenic has contaminated the yards of at least 200 homes. That's triple the total of 65 reported earlier this year.
EPA project manager Tim Prendiville said that by the end of September the agency will propose adding the area of East Phillips and parts of adjacent neighborhoods to the Superfund list to make the area eligible for funds set aside for large hazardous-waste cleanups.
Prendiville said the testing showed no clear pattern of contamination, with some highly contaminated yards next to yards with little contamination at all.
Experts will be available at a public meeting on Tuesday to answer questions about the latest findings.
The results rattled some residents.
As soon as she learned that her front yard had high arsenic levels, Chelsea Miller said she called her pediatrician. She said she will pay to have her 2-year-old daughter tested, she said, and she's concerned that her dog is at risk.
"I feel confused and distrustful," Miller said. She's worried about her own health, too, since she grew up in the neighborhood.
Rita Messing, a state Department of Health scientist, said the risk to public health was low. "Just because it's in your yard doesn't mean it's in your body," she said, adding that much of the affected area is covered by lawns or other landscaping.
Just in case, Messing said, residents should wash their hands after working outdoors, rinse off vegetables grown in their gardens, avoid tracking dirt into their houses and follow other commonsense measures.
"People can still use their yards and gardens, just with a little more care," she said.
(© 2006 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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