Flooding may have tainted land
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
JEREMIAH STETTLER
THE
Flood waters washed over the shores of the
The water may have carried dioxin, a tight-fisted toxin that clings to soil
particles flooding from the river bottom onto shore.
The waters receded, but the sediment remained, sometimes on lawns planted with
fresh seed or on garden plots covered in new soil during Dow Chemical Co.'s
efforts to reduce dioxin exposure along the river last year.
Dioxin is a toxic byproduct of chemical manufacture that has caused cancer and
birth defects in laboratory animals, scientists say.
So what to do about this fresh contamination? How about clean it up again.
Dow Chemical is under state orders to keep at it until a long-term solution is
found for ridding the river of dioxin, a persistent byproduct of chemical
manufacturing linked to historic emissions from Dow's
The mandate refers specifically to spots that Dow landscaped, seeded or covered
last year that are submerged all over again.
"If there is something that has been disturbed that we've done -- like
raised a vegetable garden or raised a flower bed -- then we have the obligation
to go back and fix it," said Priscilla Denney, a project engineer
specialist for Dow.
There's no limit to how many times Dow will respond to such events.
Thus far, only one person has requested a repeat visit from Dow's contractor,
AKT Peerless Environmental Services of Saginaw.
Many more may qualify, however. Along the
Dow officials say repeat service is available to any property owner who had
work done by AKT Peerless last year who believes flooding may have recontaminated
the property. Those interested may call 754-9896.
"At some point, there is going to be a final remediation," said Al
Taylor, senior geologist for the state's Waste and Hazardous Materials
Division. "This is only the stuff that's going on until we figure out the
extent of the problem and how to address it."
Soon, Dow will have more properties to think about.
The company now must limit dioxin exposure on any property dubbed a
"Priority 2" -- a label given to properties that flooded in March
2004 or that have dioxin levels approaching or exceeding the federal limit of
1,000 parts per trillion.
That means replacing garden soil, patching bare spots of lawn, cleaning houses
or even replacing carpet to keep people from touching tainted soil or inhaling
contaminated dust.
Dow officials have submitted a work plan to the state and now await approval.
Spokesman John C. Musser said the company hopes to begin work this spring. v
Jeremiah Stettler is a staff writer for The Saginaw News. Call him at 776-9685.
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