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| ⚫ | '''Coldwater Creek''' (also '''Cold Water Creek''') is a 19-mile [[tributary]] of the [[Missouri River]] in north [[St. Louis County, Missouri|St. Louis County]] in the U.S. state of [[Missouri]].<ref>{{GNIS|755905}}</ref> It is known to be contaminated with [[radioactive waste]]s several miles upstream of its northern mouth. |
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{{About|the creek in North St. Louis County, Missouri||Coldwater Creek (disambiguation)}} |
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==Location== |
==Location== |
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The creek begins in a small spring-fed lake |
The creek begins in a small spring-fed lake in [[Overland, Missouri|Overland]], then flows north through the cities of [[Breckenridge Hills]], [[St. Ann, Missouri|St. Ann]], and [[Bridgeton, Missouri|Bridgeton]] before entering a [[culvert]] underneath [[Lambert International Airport]]. North of the airport, it flows northeast through the communities of [[Hazelwood, Missouri|Hazelwood]], [[Berkeley, Missouri|Berkeley]], [[Florissant, Missouri|Florissant]], [[Old Jamestown]], [[Black Jack, Missouri|Black Jack]], and [[Spanish Lake, Missouri|Spanish Lake]].<ref name=stlouismagthepoisonedchildren>{{cite news|last1=Hartmann|first1=Ray|title=The Poisoned Children of Coldwater Creek: St. Louis' nuclear legacy may be graver than anyone knows.|url=http://www.stlmag.com/news/think-again/The-Poisoned-Children-of-Coldwater-Creek/|accessdate=January 2, 2016|work=St. Louis Magazine|date=May 22, 2013}}</ref> According to ''[[St. Louis Magazine]]'', "It runs past schools, golf courses, and soccer fields."<ref name=stlouismagthepoisonedchildren/> |
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The creek terminates |
The creek terminates at the Missouri River between the [[Lewis Bridge (Missouri River)|Lewis Bridge]] and the [[Columbia Bottom Conservation Area]]. |
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==History== |
==History== |
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The name "Cold Water Creek" is a translation of the original [[Louisiana (New France)|French]] name ''Rivière de L'eau Froide''. The Spaniards called it |
The name "Cold Water Creek" is a translation of the original [[Louisiana (New France)|French]] name ''Rivière de L'eau Froide''. The [[Louisiana (New Spain)|Spaniards]] called it ''Río Fernando'', Spanish for "Ferdinand River". The French also called it ''Rivière aux Biches'', French for "River of Roebucks".<ref>{{cite web | url=http://shsmo.org/manuscripts/ramsay/ramsay_saint_louis.html | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624071311/http://shsmo.org/manuscripts/ramsay/ramsay_saint_louis.html | archivedate=June 24, 2016 | url-status=dead | title=St. Louis County Place Names, 1928–1945 | publisher=The State Historical Society of Missouri | accessdate=December 22, 2016 }}</ref> |
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===Mallinckrodt nuclear waste contamination === |
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In December 1989 the U.S. Department of Energy |
In December 1989, the [[U.S. Department of Energy]] reported that [[radioactive material]] was found to be present "in and along" the creek. That release of information halted a [[flood-control]] project planned between the [[United States Army Corps of Engineers]] and local suburban communities for the previous eleven years.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bertelson |first1=Christine |title=Radiation Discovery Stalls Creek Plan (subscription required)|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/141250796/?terms=%22coldwater%2Bcreek%22%2Bmallinckrodt |accessdate=7 March 2020 |publisher=St. Louis Post-Dispatch |date=18 May 1990}}</ref> |
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The material was traced to two nearby dump sites, both from a common source: |
The material was traced to two nearby dump sites, both from a common source: the [[Mallinckrodt Chemical Works]]. In 1942, Mallinckrodt had reached an exclusive agreement with the U.S. government's [[Manhattan Engineering District]], an agency of the U.S. Department of Energy, to produce [[weapons-grade uranium]] at its factory north of downtown.<ref name=stlouismagthepoisonedchildren/><ref name=independentcoldwater>{{cite news|last1=Eleftheriou-Smith|first1=Loulla-Mae|title=Coldwater Creek, St Louis: The area of Missouri under investigation after 'unusual' numbers of rare cancers found|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/coldwater-creek-st-louis-the-area-of-missouri-under-investigation-after-unusual-numbers-of-rare-a6711616.html|accessdate=January 2, 2016|work=The Independent|date=October 28, 2015}}</ref> From 1947, the company and the USACE used a 21.7-acre property near Lambert Field for the purpose of burying steel drums containing the radioactive wastes from the downtown plant and other locations. That site became the St. Louis Airport Storage Site (SLAPSS).<ref name=stlouismagthepoisonedchildren/><ref name=independentcoldwater/> In 1966, the Cotter Corporation purchased minerals from the Mallinckrodt Chemical Works for refinement. [[Barium sulfate]]<ref name="semspub.epa.gov">{{Cite report |url=https://semspub.epa.gov/work/07/30337840.pdf |title=Site Background & Current Conditions West Lake Landfill Superfund Site Operable Unit 1 |last=[[United States Environmental Protection Agency|U.S. EPA]], Region 7 |date=2017-12-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221019193619/https://semspub.epa.gov/work/07/30337840.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-19 |url-status=live}}</ref> along with other chemical and radiological extraction products were stored at Latty Avenue. Additionally, Cotter Corp. worked with B&K Construction to dry and transport material to [[Canon City, Colorado]]. When the process of extraction was determined to be unprofitable, the material was shipped in uncovered dump trucks to a landfill site on Latty Avenue, and another, the [[West Lake Landfill]] in Bridgeton.<ref name="semspub.epa.gov"/> Material from both the original SLAPPS site and from the Latty site eventually made its way into the creek bed and to many neighboring homes and properties. |
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In 1989 the creek was |
In 1989, the creek was finalized on the [[List of Superfund sites in Missouri|National Priorities List]] of the [[Superfund]] program of the [[U.S. Environmental Protection Agency]].<ref>{{cite web |title=St. Louis Airport/Hazelwood Interim Storage/Futura Coatings of St. Louis, Mo |url=https://cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/SiteProfiles/index.cfm?fuseaction=second.schedule&id=0701210 |publisher=United States Environmental Protection Agency |accessdate=March 8, 2020}}</ref> |
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In August 2015, the |
Between 2008 and 2011, local residents noticed what seemed an unusual concentration of [[cancer]]s, other illnesses, and [[birth defect]]s among their age cohort. Many were graduates of [[McCluer North High School]] and organized around its class reunions.<ref name=stlouismagthepoisonedchildren/> In August 2015, the United States Army Corps of Engineers admitted that they found [[thorium-230]] in the creek.<ref name=stlouispostarmycorps>{{cite news|last1=Barker|first1=Jacob|title=Army Corps confirms radioactive contamination in yards by Coldwater Creek|url=http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/army-corps-confirms-radioactive-contamination-in-yards-by-coldwater-creek/article_6c621c18-72c8-55ac-899c-2535a6089b52.html|accessdate=January 2, 2016|work=St. Louis Post-Dispatch|date=August 19, 2015}}</ref> In January 2016, the [[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]] investigated the high rate of cancers in the area, and confirmed a potential link between the cluster and the polluted creek.<ref name=independentcoldwater/> |
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In 2022, radioactive material was found at Jana Elementary School in the [[Hazelwood School District]] in Florissant. The radioactive material includes [[Isotopes of lead|lead-210]], [[polonium]], [[radium]], and other toxic materials.<ref>{{Cite web |title="I was heartbroken": Radioactive waste found at elementary school outside St. Louis |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/radioactive-waste-found-jana-elementary-school-outside-st-louis/ |access-date=2022-10-17 |website=www.cbsnews.com |language=en-US}}</ref> The Army Corps of Engineers has been cleaning up the creek for decades but refuses to share detailed information with the public about its findings.<ref>{{cite news |last=Bogan |first=Jesse |accessdate= 4 April 2023 |title=“The Trouble with Coldwater Creek: It's Not Just Jana Elementary.” |page=A1. Access World News |work=St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO), 2022 |url=https://infoweb-newsbank-com.ezproxy.slpl.org/apps/news/document-view?p=AWNB&docref=news/18DEB9387B87CEA0}}</ref> |
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==References== |
==References== |
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{{coord|38.83166|-90.21894|type:river_region:US-MO|format=dms|display=title}} |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Cold Water Creek}} |
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[[Category:Rivers of Missouri]] |
[[Category:Rivers of Missouri]] |
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[[Category:Superfund sites in Missouri]] |
[[Category:Superfund sites in Missouri]] |
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{{Missouri-river-stub}} |
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Latest revision as of 17:48, 17 February 2024
Coldwater Creek (also Cold Water Creek) is a 19-mile tributary of the Missouri River in north St. Louis County in the U.S. state of Missouri.[1] It is known to be contaminated with radioactive wastes several miles upstream of its northern mouth.
Location
[edit]The creek begins in a small spring-fed lake in Overland, then flows north through the cities of Breckenridge Hills, St. Ann, and Bridgeton before entering a culvert underneath Lambert International Airport. North of the airport, it flows northeast through the communities of Hazelwood, Berkeley, Florissant, Old Jamestown, Black Jack, and Spanish Lake.[2] According to St. Louis Magazine, "It runs past schools, golf courses, and soccer fields."[2]
The creek terminates at the Missouri River between the Lewis Bridge and the Columbia Bottom Conservation Area.
History
[edit]The name "Cold Water Creek" is a translation of the original French name Rivière de L'eau Froide. The Spaniards called it Río Fernando, Spanish for "Ferdinand River". The French also called it Rivière aux Biches, French for "River of Roebucks".[3]
Mallinckrodt nuclear waste contamination
[edit]In December 1989, the U.S. Department of Energy reported that radioactive material was found to be present "in and along" the creek. That release of information halted a flood-control project planned between the United States Army Corps of Engineers and local suburban communities for the previous eleven years.[4]
The material was traced to two nearby dump sites, both from a common source: the Mallinckrodt Chemical Works. In 1942, Mallinckrodt had reached an exclusive agreement with the U.S. government's Manhattan Engineering District, an agency of the U.S. Department of Energy, to produce weapons-grade uranium at its factory north of downtown.[2][5] From 1947, the company and the USACE used a 21.7-acre property near Lambert Field for the purpose of burying steel drums containing the radioactive wastes from the downtown plant and other locations. That site became the St. Louis Airport Storage Site (SLAPSS).[2][5] In 1966, the Cotter Corporation purchased minerals from the Mallinckrodt Chemical Works for refinement. Barium sulfate[6] along with other chemical and radiological extraction products were stored at Latty Avenue. Additionally, Cotter Corp. worked with B&K Construction to dry and transport material to Canon City, Colorado. When the process of extraction was determined to be unprofitable, the material was shipped in uncovered dump trucks to a landfill site on Latty Avenue, and another, the West Lake Landfill in Bridgeton.[6] Material from both the original SLAPPS site and from the Latty site eventually made its way into the creek bed and to many neighboring homes and properties.
In 1989, the creek was finalized on the National Priorities List of the Superfund program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.[7]
Between 2008 and 2011, local residents noticed what seemed an unusual concentration of cancers, other illnesses, and birth defects among their age cohort. Many were graduates of McCluer North High School and organized around its class reunions.[2] In August 2015, the United States Army Corps of Engineers admitted that they found thorium-230 in the creek.[8] In January 2016, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention investigated the high rate of cancers in the area, and confirmed a potential link between the cluster and the polluted creek.[5]
In 2022, radioactive material was found at Jana Elementary School in the Hazelwood School District in Florissant. The radioactive material includes lead-210, polonium, radium, and other toxic materials.[9] The Army Corps of Engineers has been cleaning up the creek for decades but refuses to share detailed information with the public about its findings.[10]
References
[edit]- ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Coldwater Creek (Missouri river tributary)
- ^ a b c d e Hartmann, Ray (May 22, 2013). "The Poisoned Children of Coldwater Creek: St. Louis' nuclear legacy may be graver than anyone knows". St. Louis Magazine. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
- ^ "St. Louis County Place Names, 1928–1945". The State Historical Society of Missouri. Archived from the original on June 24, 2016. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
- ^ Bertelson, Christine (18 May 1990). "Radiation Discovery Stalls Creek Plan (subscription required)". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
- ^ a b c Eleftheriou-Smith, Loulla-Mae (October 28, 2015). "Coldwater Creek, St Louis: The area of Missouri under investigation after 'unusual' numbers of rare cancers found". The Independent. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
- ^ a b U.S. EPA, Region 7 (2017-12-26). Site Background & Current Conditions West Lake Landfill Superfund Site Operable Unit 1 (PDF) (Report). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-10-19.
{{cite report}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "St. Louis Airport/Hazelwood Interim Storage/Futura Coatings of St. Louis, Mo". United States Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
- ^ Barker, Jacob (August 19, 2015). "Army Corps confirms radioactive contamination in yards by Coldwater Creek". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
- ^ ""I was heartbroken": Radioactive waste found at elementary school outside St. Louis". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 2022-10-17.
- ^ Bogan, Jesse. ""The Trouble with Coldwater Creek: It's Not Just Jana Elementary."". St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO), 2022. p. A1. Access World News. Retrieved 4 April 2023.