Officials to test water from Ohio village near Cold War-era weapons plant after newspaper probe
LUCKEY, Ohio (AP) — Authorities in Ohio plan to test the groundwater supply across a village near a former weapons plant after a newspaper investigation published Friday found high levels of radioactivity in samples taken at a school, athletic field, library and other sites.
The Army Corps of Engineers has been removing tons of contaminated soil from the Cold War-era site since 2018 and has long maintained that residential areas were not affected by the work.
However, The Blade in Toledo said its tests showed radioactivity levels 10 times higher than normal in water from a drinking fountain at Eastwood Middle School, 45 times higher than normal at the Luckey Library and 1,731 times higher than normal at a water pump near athletic fields.
'We've got to get to the bottom of this,' said Lt. Col. Robert Burnham, commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Buffalo District, which oversees the cleanup.
Nineteen of the 39 samples collected by the newspaper from well water across Luckey — at homes, businesses, and public places — showed radioactivity at least 10 times greater than what the federal government calls normal for the area, the newspaper said. The Blade hired an accredited private lab to conduct the testing.
The radioactivity detected was primarily bismuth-214, which decays from the radioactive gas radon-222. Experts agree that high levels of bismuth-214 suggest high levels of radon are also present.
Radon exposure is the leading cause of lung cancer in nonsmokers.
The testing also found low levels of radioactive cobalt-60, a man-made isotope, in two wells. Experts called that finding extremely rare.
Taehyun Roh, a Texas A&M University scientist who specializes in environmental exposures, said regulators should also conduct air and soil testing to assess the extent of the contamination and identify the source.
"Since this area likely has high radon levels, testing for radon in both air and water is advisable,' he wrote in an email. 'A safe drinking water advisory should be issued, recommending the use of bottled water until further assessments and mitigation measures are in place.'
The Corps of Engineers has long maintained that residential drinking water was not being contaminated by the removal work. Burnham and others said they still believe that to be true, citing thousands of their own soil samples.
The state Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Health will lead the testing. In an email, Ohio EPA spokesperson Katie Boyer told the newspaper the contaminant levels in the public drinking water are still 'within acceptable drinking water standards.' She said any concerns raised by the state testing would be addressed.
The 44-acre industrial site — 22 miles (35 kilometers) south of Toledo — was long crucial to America's nuclear weapons program. In the 1940s, farmland was replaced by a sprawling defense plant that produced magnesium metal for the Manhattan Project. In the 1950s, the plant became the government's sole source of beryllium metal for nuclear bombs, Cold War missiles and Space Race products, including a heat shield for Project Mercury.
'Things that happened generations ago are still affecting us,' said Karina Hahn-Claydon, a 50-year-old teacher whose family lives less than a mile from the site. 'And that's because the government didn't take care of it.'
Private drinking wells, unlike municipal systems, are not regulated, and responsibility for testing is left to owners. The Blade's testing took place from April 2024 through January.
Radioactivity has been linked to an increased risk of various cancers, including blood and thyroid cancers.
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The Hill
an hour ago
- The Hill
A judge just took Trump to task for his attack on science
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On May 23, President Trump issued an executive order alleging that 'Actions taken by the prior Administration … politicized science, for example, by encouraging agencies to incorporate diversity, equity, and inclusion considerations into all aspects of science planning, execution, and communication.' The president promised to restore what he called a 'gold standard for science to ensure that federally funded research is transparent, rigorous, and impactful.' But on June 16, Judge William G. Young of the Federal District Court for the District of Massachusetts exposed that promise as just a pretext for carrying out a war on science. He said that cuts to the National Institutes of Health grants mandated by the president and others in the federal government were blatantly discriminatory and rooted in prejudice. Judge Young ordered the government to restore most of those grants. This is not the first time in American history that the scientific enterprise has been used as a political football. Indeed, as a 2017 article in Scientific American notes, 'The reality is that engaging in scientific research is a social activity and an inherently political one.' Scientific projects, like World War II's Manhattan Project, which led to the atomic bomb, and the massive investment in science after Russia launched the first satellite into space, have been fueled by political goals. Moreover, the work of scientists on subjects like global warming can easily get caught up in partisan contests. Critics worry that the scientific enterprise will be tainted by the political agendas of those who supply funding and help drum up public support for the work scientists do. Those worries reached a fever pitch following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Science skepticism spiked as resentment grew over such polices as universal masking and school closures. 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Americans should not be blind to why the Trump administration is targeting science and what its consequences will be for all of us. As Serwer puts it, the president and his allies believe that the kind of 'truth-seeking' that goes on in scientific laboratories all over the country 'imperils their hold on power.' But whatever its motivation, the president's assault on science will leave us sicker, less prosperous, and more vulnerable to the ravages of nature. It will leave this country weaker and will undermine its position in the world. Put simply, America loses when science loses. Austin Sarat is the William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science at Amherst College.
San Francisco Chronicle
3 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
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He was getting closer, losing in a playoff at The Players Championship to Rory McIlroy, before his epic breakthrough at Oakmont. It resonated in some corners more than others. 'It was awesome to see him have the week he had,' said Eric Cole, who also has Type 1 diabetes and has risen from the mini-tours to play in six of the last seven majors. 'It's cool to see diabetes doesn't slow him down. He has a lot of extra stuff to deal with behind the scenes.' Imagine the thrill for Bessette when he watched Spaun overcome a misdiagnosis and manage Type 1 diabetes to handle the highest pressure in the game. Bessette can relate. He qualified as a hammer thrower for the 1980 Olympics that the U.S. boycotted. 'I think this is one of the most amazing achievements in sport for somebody who has Type 1, whose sugar levels are up and down, trying to keep them under control and win the U.S. Open,' Bessette said. 'Are you kidding me? It's brutal competition for four days. I told him, 'I'm amazed by what you did.'" Spaun returned to the Travelers Championship this year with an empty tank. He said blood sugar levels crashed hard after he won at Oakmont, from the battle on the back nine but more from the emotion and celebration and all the media obligations that followed. Five years after he hit an 85-yard shot onto a red umbrella, he returned with a big silver trophy as the U.S. Open champion. Bessette was beaming, and the connection wasn't lost on Spaun. 'He's kind of been there for me the whole way,' Spaun said. 'Even when I got my diagnosis corrected, I guess, it was even more so helpful to have JDRF and Andy on my side to kind of help me navigate another new territory.' ___
Fox Sports
3 hours ago
- Fox Sports
J.J. Spaun's path to U.S. Open title helped by a shot onto an umbrella
Associated Press CROMWELL, Conn. (AP) — J.J. Spaun knows as well as anyone how one little shot can make such a huge difference, even if it's only 85 yards to a green in the shape of a red umbrella floating in the middle of a lake. It wasn't a shot that won the U.S. Open. Spaun will be remembered far more for the driver he hit onto the 17th green at Oakmont to take the lead, and for the 65-foot putt on the last hole to cap off his sensational birdie-birdie finish at golf's toughest test. This shot was five years ago at the Travelers Championship. It was no less important to Spaun, who has Type 1 diabetes but didn't know it at the time. 'It's crazy,' said Andy Bessette, the executive vice president and chief administrative officer at Travelers Insurance, and a familiar face behind the tournament. 'Not everything in life is for a reason, but at times you have to step back and think it's too weird it happened that way.' A 15-year tradition at the Travelers is 'The Umbrella at 15 1/2 Challenge,' where players during the pro-am hit an 85-yard shot at the umbrella that sits in the lake between the 15th and 16th holes at the TPC River Highland. The closest to the pin is given $10,000 to donate to charity. It was in 2020 when Spaun — who had been misdiagnosed with Type 2 diabetes some 18 months earlier — hit his lob wedge to 19 inches to win the challenge. The charity of his choice: The Junior Diabetes Research Foundation, now known as Breakthrough T1D. 'When Travelers got word of where I wanted that donation to go, Andy Bessette kind of broke down apparently and was touched very deeply because he's a very integral part of that charity and donates quite a lot of money, too,' Spaun said. 'So that initiated our connection.' Bessette's son, Chris, was was diagnosed with Type 1 in 2011 at age 18. They are deeply connected with Breakthrough T1D, and when he heard where Spaun directed his donation, the Bessette family immediately matched it. So began a relationship that became more valuable than Spaun could have imagined. Even after the initial diagnosis of Type 2 in the fall of 2018, Spaun kept losing weight and energy. Something wasn't right and he knew it. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks and destroys the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, leading to little or no insulin. Type 2 is more common, mainly affect adults. The body doesn't make enough insulin and is often managed with lifestyle changes, such as diet. Once doctors got the diagnosis right in 2021, Spaun still struggled to find the right treatment for someone who spends five hours or more on the golf course. On one occasion, his close friend Harold Varner III noticed something off and encouraged to tap into Bessette's resources. 'We called him together, Harold and I, and I said, 'J.J., anything you need, you tell me.' He told me what was going on. It was about getting the right kind of care," Bessette said. In this case, it was a new product that allowed insulin to be inhaled instead of injections, far easier to manage on the course. Bessette also connected him with a doctor in Los Angeles who worked with athletes on how to handle blood sugar levels. 'He is very well connected with the diabetes community, so all these doctors were at my disposal,' Spaun said. A tough road is nothing new to Spaun. He was a walk-on at San Diego State. He spent three years on developmental circuits before reaching the PGA Tour. He had to go back to the Korn Ferry Tour, fell as low as No. 584 in the world ranking in 2021 and won for the first time a year later at the Texas Open. Spaun has dips in form, as most golfers do. He was worried a year ago about losing his card until he pulled it together late last year. He was getting closer, losing in a playoff at The Players Championship to Rory McIlroy, before his epic breakthrough at Oakmont. It resonated in some corners more than others. 'It was awesome to see him have the week he had,' said Eric Cole, who also has Type 1 diabetes and has risen from the mini-tours to play in six of the last seven majors. 'It's cool to see diabetes doesn't slow him down. He has a lot of extra stuff to deal with behind the scenes.' Imagine the thrill for Bessette when he watched Spaun overcome a misdiagnosis and manage Type 1 diabetes to handle the highest pressure in the game. Bessette can relate. He qualified as a hammer thrower for the 1980 Olympics that the U.S. boycotted. 'I think this is one of the most amazing achievements in sport for somebody who has Type 1, whose sugar levels are up and down, trying to keep them under control and win the U.S. Open,' Bessette said. 'Are you kidding me? It's brutal competition for four days. I told him, 'I'm amazed by what you did.'" Spaun returned to the Travelers Championship this year with an empty tank. He said blood sugar levels crashed hard after he won at Oakmont, from the battle on the back nine but more from the emotion and celebration and all the media obligations that followed. Five years after he hit an 85-yard shot onto a red umbrella, he returned with a big silver trophy as the U.S. Open champion. Bessette was beaming, and the connection wasn't lost on Spaun. 'He's kind of been there for me the whole way,' Spaun said. 'Even when I got my diagnosis corrected, I guess, it was even more so helpful to have JDRF and Andy on my side to kind of help me navigate another new territory.' ___ AP golf: recommended
