The US Navy faces criticism from public health activists for covering up dangerous levels of radioactive waste contamination at a former naval shipyard in California, The Guardian reported Sunday.
The 866-acre Hunter’s Point Naval Shipyard in San Francisco once housed a secret naval laboratory that injected animals with the radioactive isotope strontium-90, according to reports. The isotopes are also part of the phosphorescent paint at the site, and reportedly may have flowed into drains or washed off ships used in nuclear tests in the Pacific. The 40-acre property, named “Purcell G,” which once housed a research lab, could be turned over to city officials in 2024 for use in housing development, the report said.
The Navy’s previous assessment of the shipyard pointed to rising strontium-90 contamination within the yard, but a reassessment found the isotope levels to be below freezing, according to the report.
Dr. James Dahlgren, an environmental toxicologist, responded to the reassessment, saying, “It’s completely false, false and scientifically offensive,” noting that subzero levels of contamination are scientifically impossible. suggested. NBC news coverage.
“It’s impossible to have a negative number in the strontium-90 data. It’s impossible,” said Ray Tompkins, an environmental activist who participated in the 2011 cleanup project, according to NBC. (Related: Supreme Court rejects veterans’ disability benefit appeal over Cold War-era nuclear accident)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) list Hunter’s Point Naval Shipyard is treated as a “superfund site,” a term used to refer to polluted sites in the country.
Ariane Harrison’s mother died of a lung disease she believed was related to her work and activities at Hunter’s Point Naval Shipyard, which was used for radiological screening in the 80s. Ariane continues the fight for her mother’s actions and the cleansing of the toxic place. pic.twitter.com/iz7omsQ5bx
— KQED Science (@KQEDscience) July 5, 2022
Various cancers that occurred in residential areas around the shipyard were suspected to be linked to radioactive contamination at the shipyard, according to the agency. San Francisco Bayview National Black Newspaper. According to NBC, strontium-90 has an affinity for human bone tissue, and if deposited, it can cause cancer over time, Dr. Dahlgren said.
Ann Environmental impact assessment report The Navy Nuclear Propulsion Plan, announced in May 2019, states that “while the Navy and the EPA monitor ports where U.S. Navy nuclear-powered vessels are based, overhauled, or built, they are expected to exceed normal background levels in harbor waters.” No increase in radioactivity was detected.” but, Information released by EPA An investigation into the situation at Hunters Shipyard at the time of this report revealed the presence of not only Strontium-90, but also other radioactive elements and heavy metals, all of which the EPA has classified as Contaminants of Concern (COC). . Additional EPA Information Given the contamination concerns, the site indicated that it was not ready for the expected use.
The Guardian newspaper reports that the Navy, headed by the U.S. Department of Justice, is currently filing 12 lawsuits related to the site.
