Image
c edits:
EPA
At
times,
thi gs
go
w o g
eve
whe
you
t y
with
all
you
might
to
e su e
they
a e
ight.
It
was
i
the
1970s,
that
Times
Beach,
a
small
tow
i
Missou i,
attempted
to
solve
a
commo
p oblem
fo
di t
oads
by
sp eadi g
esidual
oil
to
educe
dust.
Yea s
late ,
it
was
discove ed
that
some
of
that
mate ial
co tai ed
dioxi ,
a
highly
toxic
substa ce
that
would
t igge
the
pe ma e t
elocatio
of
the
Times
Beach
populatio .
The
situatio
escalated
fu the
afte
a
seve e
flood
of
the
Me amec
Rive
i
Decembe
1982.
With
the
tow
flooded
a d
co tami atio
al eady
ide tified,
fede al
autho ities
advised
eside ts
ot
to
etu .Oil
used
to
emove
dustTimes
Beach
was
located
i
St.
Louis
Cou ty,
app oximately
20
miles
—
about
32
kilomet es,
southwest
of
St.
Louis.
Its
u paved
st eets
we e
t eated
with
esidual
oil
as
a
way
to
co t ol
dust
aised
by
t affic.
Acco di g
to
histo ical
i fo matio
published
by
the
U.S.
E vi o me tal
P otectio
Age cy
(EPA),
the
oil
haulie
Russell
Bliss
was
hi ed
i
the
ea ly
1970s
to
emove
waste
f om
a
chemical
pla t
i
Ve o a,
also
i
Missou i.Some
of
this
waste
co tai ed
2,3,7,8-tet achlo odibe zo-p-dioxi ,
k ow
as
TCDD,
a
fo m
of
dioxi .
Bliss
mixed
the
mate ial
with
the
waste
oil
that
was
ultimately
applied
to
co t ol
dust.
The
EPA
otes
that
the
co tami ated
mixtu e
was
sp ead
ac oss
mo e
tha
25
locatio s
i
Missou i,
i cludi g
di t
oads,
ho se
t ails,
a d
Times
Beach.
The
age cy
classifies
the
dioxi
i volved
i
the
i cide t
as
highly
toxic
a d
associates
exposu e
with
va ious
health
damages.
Sig s
of
damage
The
fi st
seve e
sig s
appea ed
fa
f om
Times
Beach.
I
1971,
ove
40
ho ses
died
at
She a doah
Stables,
o e
of
the
p ope ties
whe e
Bliss
had
sp ead
the
mate ial.
Bi ds,
dogs,
a d
cats
we e
also
fou d
dead,
a d
a
six-yea -old
gi l
became
se iously
ill.
Subseque t
i vestigatio s
li ked
these
i cide ts
to
dioxi .I
Ma ch
1982,
the
EPA
eceived
eco ds
f om
the
the
Ce t es
fo
Disease
Co t ol
(CDC),
elated
to
dioxi
co tami atio
i
Missou i
a d
bega
to
develop
pla s
fo
a alysi g
va ious
locatio s
i
the
state.I
Novembe
of
that
yea ,
Times
Beach
was
ale ted
to
the
possibility
that
its
st eets
might
also
be
co tami ated.
The
EPA
sta ted
collecti g
a d
a alysi g
soil
samples.It
was
p ecisely
at
this
mome t
that
a
atu al
eme ge cy
made
the
situatio
eve
mo e
seve e.
I
Decembe
1982,
a
eco d
flood
st uck
the
Me amec
Rive .
Times
Beach
was
i u dated,
a d
its
eside ts
had
to
leave
thei
homes.
The
co tami atio
was
ot
caused
by
the
floodi g:
oil
co tai i g
dioxi
had
al eady
bee
applied
o
the
st eets
yea s
ea lie .
Autho ities
fea ed
that
the
wate
could
fu the
sp ead
the
co tami ated
mate ial
th oughout
the
mu icipality.Give
this
isk,
the
EPA
a d
CDC
ecomme ded
that
Times
Beach
ot
be
i habited
agai .
A
pe ma e t
elocatio
The
situatio
took
a
defi itive
tu
o
Feb ua y
22,
1983.
O
that
day,
the
EPA,
the
Fede al
Eme ge cy
Ma ageme t
Age cy
(FEMA),
a d
the
state
of
Missou i
a ou ced
esou ces
fo
the
pe ma e t
elocatio
of
Times
Beach
eside ts.The
official
EPA
stateme t
eleased
i
Feb ua y
1983
stated
that
the
decisio
came
afte
the
CDC
a alysed
exte sive
soil
samples
a d
co cluded
that
the
co tami atio
posed
a
co ti ui g
th eat
to
the
health
of
eside ts.App oximately
255
samples
collected
afte
the
flood
we e
a alysed.
I
st eets,
shoulde s,
a d
ditches,
the
co ce t atio s
fou d
va ied
f om
o -detectable
levels
to
100
pa ts
pe
billio .
Some
backya ds
a d
o e
eside ce
exhibited
co ce t atio s
g eate
tha
1
pa t
pe
billio
a d
less
tha
5
pa ts
pe
billio .The
the
EPA
Admi ist ato ,
A e
M.
Bu fo d,
a ou ced
the
t a sfe
of
US$
33.1
millio
f om
the
Supe fu d
to
FEMA
to
fu d
the
elocatio .
The
state
of
Missou i
would
pa ticipate
i
impleme tatio
a d
bea
10%
of
the
costs,
acco di g
to
the
ules
established
fo
the
ope atio .The
EPA’s
et ospective
i dicated
that
Times
Beach
had
mo e
tha
2,000
eside ts
a d
that
the
pla
i volved
the
pu chase
of
about
800
eside tial
p ope ties
a d
30
comme cial
establishme ts.
A
i ci e atio
built
o
the
fo me
tow
Howeve ,
emovi g
the
eside ts
did
ot
solve
the
co tami atio .
I
1988,
the
EPA
app oved
a
tempo a y
i ci e ato
i
Times
Beach
to
t eat
co tami ated
mate ials
f om
both
the
fo me
tow
a d
othe
locatio s
i
easte
Missou i.Two
yea s
late ,
i
1990,
a
ag eeme t
established
espo sibilities
fo
deco tami atio .
Co tami ated
soil
f om
othe
sites
would
be
excavated
a d
t a spo ted
to
Times
Beach,
while
em a ts
of
the
fo me
city,
i cludi g
st uctu es
a d
deb is,
would
also
be
pa t
of
the
clea up
p ocess.
Full-scale
ope atio
of
the
i ci e ato
bega
i
Ma ch
1996
a d
co ti ued
u til
Ju e
1997.The
umbe s
eco ded
by
the
EPA
show
the
scale
of
the
ope atio .
I
total,
265,354
to s
of
dioxi -co tami ated
mate ials
f om
27
sites
i
easte
Missou i
we e
t eated.
Of
this
total,
37,234
to s
came
f om
Times
Beach
itself.
The efo e,
the
mo e
tha
265,000
to s
ofte
associated
with
the
case
we e
ot
o igi ally
co ce t ated
o ly
withi
the
city.
The
emai de
was
t a spo ted
f om
othe
co tami ated
poi ts
i
the
egio
fo
t eatme t
at
the
i ci e ato
i stalled
the e.The
histo ical
epo t
f om
the
EPA
o
the
emoval
of
Times
Beach
f om
the
Supe fu d
p io ity
list
also
states
that
the
solid
waste
esulti g
f om
i ci e atio
was
deposited
o -site
afte
tests
co fi med
that
the
equi ed
t eatme t
levels
had
bee
achieved.
The
a
tow ,
ow
a
pa k
Afte
the
completio
of
deco tami atio ,
Times
Beach
u de we t
a
adical
t a sfo matio .
Houses
a d
othe
st uctu es
we e
demolished,
eside ts
a d
busi esses
we e
elocated,
a d
the
la d
u de we t
esto atio
effo ts.I
Septembe
1999,
Missou i
a ou ced
the
ope i g
of
Route
66
State
Pa k,
located
p ecisely
i
the
a ea
p eviously
occupied
by
Times
Beach.
The
EPA
epo ted
that
the
pa k
occupies
409
ac es,
about
1.65
squa e
kilomet es,
a d
was
amed
afte
the
histo ic
Route
66
that
u s
th ough
the
egio .O
Septembe
25,
2001,
Times
Beach
was
officially
emoved
f om
the
Natio al
P io ities
List,
the
fede al
list
of
p io ity
sites
u de
the
Supe fu d
p og am.
The
EPA
a d
the
state
of
Missou i
co cluded
that
the
site
o
lo ge
posed
a
sig ifica t
th eat
to
public
health
o
the
e vi o me t
a d
that
o
fu the
emediatio
measu es
we e
ecessa y.Today,
the
space
p ese ves
em a ts
of
Times
Beach
a d
also
se ves
as
a
emi de
of
o e
of
the
most
sig ifica t
e vi o me tal
episodes
eve
faced
i
Ame ica.