Contaminated dirt in Detroit River causes concern

SANDUSKY — The collapse of land contaminated by uranium into the Detroit River apparently did not release radiation into the water, Michigan's environmental agency says, but tests are pending on chemical contamination.Testing at the site of the sediment collapse shows radiation below background levels, confirming older tests at the site that showed low radiation, according to a press release issued by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy.A riverfront property in Detroit collapsed into the river, according to multiple news reports. The company operating at the site, Detroit Bulk Storage, noticed the spill on Nov. 26, but the Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy was not notified until Dec. 4, the agency said. The Detroit River flows into Lake Erie.While radiation apparently is not a problem, water samples are being tested for chemicals that might have been released into the water by the sediment collapse, the agency said."Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy staff also took water samples from the Detroit River upstream and downstream from the site of the limestone pile collapse, as well as in front of the site. The three water samples will be tested for material including suspended solids, metals (including uranium), PCBs, and industrial contaminants. The samples will be processed at EGLE's lab in Lansing on an expedited timeframe," the news release said.Late Monday, the agency announced that the water testing did not detect any polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, chemicals that occur naturally in coal, crude oil, and gasoline, at any of the three places water samples were taken. Results are still not in for four other categories. According to the Detroit Free Press, the site was used in the 1940s and 1950s for atomic bomb and uranium development.Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy spokesman Nick Assendelft told the Register Michigan officials are looking into why it took more than a week for the environmental agency to hear about the incident."Those are discussions we are having," he said.An environmental agency, Freshwater Future, also is looking at what happened, said Kristy Meyer, associate director of the group."We are concerned about Detroit's and other downstream communities' drinking water and, of course, Lake Erie because of the potential residual radioactive materials that made their way into the Detroit River. It is too early to know the true impacts, but it is important the state acts with swiftness to understand the range and magnitude of the potential for impact, as well as contain the material and clean it up," Meyer said in an email to the Register."We are working with a University of Michigan engineering professor who specializes in radioactive materials. Once we know more we can update you, but for now, we remain concerned and urge the state of Michigan to act swiftly to contain and clean-up these materials," she said.Employees of the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy examine the Detroit Bulk Storage site where contaminated land fell into the Detroit River.